Yuki
by Rogue Fox
Summary: Her parents are dead. All she has left is two little brothers who are counting on her to be strong. But when her life long best friend offers her an escape from all her problems, the last thing she expects is to run into all new ones. FINISHED!!!!
1. The New Girl

Yuki  
  
By: Rogue Fox  
  
Part One… The New Girl  
  
  
  
My name is Yuki. It means "lucky." But lucky was the last thing I felt.  
  
I was crying. My tears fell like the rain outside. I wished and wished, but no amount of wishing was going to bring them back to me. I sobbed uncontrollably, my only comfort coming from the fact that my two little brothers couldn't hear me. I had to be strong for them now. They needed me.  
  
I was eleven when my father died. My youngest brother, Yukio, was hardly nine months old, and Yoshi was six. Neither of them could possibly understand that Papa had been in a car accident and would never come home. For the next five years, my mother and I managed Papa's business. We got a lot of help from an old friend of mine, the adopted son of a business partner of Papa's. Seto Kaiba, my lifelong best friend, was an invaluable aid. Neither Mom nor I were any good at business. Seto was a natural.  
  
Then, suddenly, Mom had an aneurysm. There were no warning signs. She was dead before the ambulance even got there. I tried to save her life, I did everything I knew, but nothing could have saved her.  
  
So, there I was, the day after Mom's death, sobbing pathetically. I was the very incarnation of pathetic. My heart felt like it had shattered into a thousand pieces. Mom and I had been supporting the family mostly off of the money Papa had left in the bank. But I knew that money would last too much longer. The contractors wanted the forty acres we lived on to make a new housing development. Some big corporation wanted to buy out our business. And I was barely sixteen, suddenly thrust into the position of a mother and a CEO.  
  
I was alone in the house. Harry, our loyal butler, had sensed my need to be alone and had taken the boys out. I would have to let Harry go to save money. I sobbed again at that realization. As I thought I was totally alone, you can imagine my surprise when a hand landed on my shoulder. I wheeled around, ready to fight. Two hands clamped over my wrists and suddenly I was looking into concerned blue eyes.  
  
" Seto!" I cried, half from astonishment and half from relief. Seto had been the first person I had called after Mom's death. He had comforted me over the phone, from halfway across the world in Japan. I most certainly wasn't expecting him to show up here.  
  
" I came as soon as I got off the phone with you." He whispered to me. Suddenly I was crying again. Just like when we were little kids, Seto had come to make all my fears and nightmares disappear like the vague fantasies they were. Except this time, not even Seto could make all my troubles disappear. Seto was not a naturally touchy person, but he wrapped his arms around me and let me cry and tell him, in halting gasps, all my woes.  
  
For a few long moments after I finished, he sat in silence, holding me gently.  
  
" Is there anyone left? Any of your family?" he asked finally. I shook me head, still leaning against him.  
  
" No one. I'm all alone." I said, letting another sob wrack my body.  
  
" What about your great-grandmother?" Seto asked.  
  
" She died last year, remember?" I said, making a pathetic attempt to stop my tears. Seto paused to tenderly wipe a few tears off my cheeks.  
  
" Then come to Japan with me." He said. I stared at him in disbelief.  
  
" What?" I asked, unsure if I had heard him correctly.  
  
" Come to Japan with me. If you stay here, you and your brothers will be tossed into orphanages, and chances are you'll be separated. The government will probably take whatever money's left and all the land. Come with me to Japan. You're a natural citizen there anyway, right? I'll hire a good lawyer and we'll keep you three together." Seto said, letting me go to stand and pace. He went on in a rush. " We've got plenty of room, and we can enroll the boys in Mokuba's school. There's absolutely no reason it shouldn't work." He said. I stared at him.  
  
" But to Japan? That's one heck of a move, Seto." I said. " Can the boys take that big of a change?"  
  
" Do they have a choice? They'll adapt. Think of the alternatives. Admit it, you're hardly in a peachy situation." Seto said, cocking an eyebrow at me. I put a hand to my head.  
  
" Give us a little time, Seto! This is all happening way too fast!" I cried. I could feel the tears starting again. Seto kneeled down before me where I was sitting.  
  
" Sorry." He said. " You're the only real friend I've ever had, Yuki. I don't want anything to happen to you or your brothers. You know that." He said, placing a hand on my shoulder. He wiped my tears again and somehow, I knew it would be all right.  
  
I allowed Seto to guide me into the squat school building by putting his hand on the small of my back and holding the door open for me. I had fussed and fretted long enough, according to him.  
  
" Are you sure they'll be okay?" I asked, my brow furrowed doubtfully.  
  
" I'm positive. With Mokuba watching out for them, they'll be fine. You worry about those boys too much." Seto responded.  
  
" Well, if I don't worry, who will?" I asked crossly.  
  
" Leave the worrying to me. You concentrate on school." Seto said sternly. I patted his cheek.  
  
" You sound like you're my father." I said, wincing only slightly.  
  
" Try big brother." Seto said, nodding politely as a teacher walked by as he guided me to the office.  
  
" Ha! Me, a little sister? That's funny, Seto." I said with a laugh. Seto allowed himself a small smile and ushered me into the office.  
  
" Then go knock 'em dead, Yuki." He said, resolutely closing the door behind him. I stared after him for a long moment. Seto was a sort of big brother to me. I suddenly remembered when Seto had visited our family with his adopted father. I had taken him to the pond that lay in the back of our land to go fishing. But I, being the little showoff that I was, had to go all out. On the way there, there was a creek that one could cross by either walking across an I-beam bridge, or jumping on stepping-stones. Mom and Papa had always told me to never jump on the stepping-stones unless there was an adult there. But I conveniently forgot for a moment and jumped onto a particularly small and dangerous stone. I slipped and fell into the water. There had just been a heavy rain, and the water was swift and deep. I could feel my lungs screaming for air and my body going numb with cold, when all of the sudden, I felt a hand grab mine and haul me to the shore. I gasped, choked, coughed, wretched, and then repeated the process until my breathing returned to normal. I had looked up to see Seto, drenched and gasping, asking me if I was all right. I snapped out of my reverie. Seto had always hauled me out of trouble when I was in over my head. Suddenly I wondered if it was ever tiresome to him, always riding in on a white horse and pulling me out just in the nick of time. I wondered if it was a burden to him. I frowned, even as the secretary greeted me and handed me my schedule on a slip of paper. The thought was disturbing.  
  
That secretary was one of those women who moved people about like chess pieces, I realized as I found myself outside the office door and marveling at how I had gotten there. I looked down at my schedule and sighed. Guess the only thing left to do is find this room and try to get through the day, I thought, somewhat frightened.  
  
*+*+*  
  
I wasn't surprised to find Yugi and Jounouchi late as always. But I was surprised to see a new girl, sitting alone during the lunch period. I had heard about her, she had been seen with Seto Kaiba before school started. Since Kaiba was usually alone, she was classified as the daughter of one of his business partners and therefore rich, thus earning the title of stuck up. I thought that since Kaiba had actually kept her company, the other girls were just jealous. I could have cared less about who this new girl hung out with. All I knew for sure was that Yugi and Jounouchi had disappeared and the new girl seemed to share my lonely plight for the moment. I approached her and she gave me a startled look.  
  
" Hi, is this seat taken?" I asked.  
  
" No, go ahead. I thought for sure I was getting the silent treatment from the female population." She said. I laughed.  
  
" Only most of it. My name's Anzu, what's yours?" I asked.  
  
" Yuki. Nice to meet you." The girl responded. It was easy to see why the Kaiba-worshipers thought they had a reason to be jealous. If I had seen Yuki with Yugi, I would be jealous too. She was pretty. Her hair was just below shoulder length, bright blonde and streaked with blood red. Her eyes reminded me of Yugi's, red and violet melded in. She was slim, but her long legs rippled with muscles that told the exact opposite of the pampered life everyone had presumed she had led. Her hard muscles, tan and weathered skin, and callused hands told of a hard life filled with the outdoors and hard work. She smelled like sweet earth and wind, and her accent suggested a southern past.  
  
" I think the reason you're getting the silent treatment is because you were seen with Kaiba." I explained.  
  
" Seto?" Yuki asked, slightly surprised. " Oh. Let me guess; he's the resident eligible bachelor." She said, her face turning grim.  
  
" Yeah, that pretty much sums it up." I said. " How do you know him?" I asked, my curiosity winning me over.  
  
" He's my best friend. I've known him for years. The man who adopted him was business partners with my father, and we met through them. We've been best friends ever since." Yuki said. I smiled.  
  
" I have a friend like that. Known him for years, trust him more than anyone. So tell me. If Kaiba's your best friend, why are you here?" I asked.  
  
" Oh, um… My father died a long time ago, and my mother died a month ago. So, we came to live with Seto to get away from the people after Papa's business and our house." Yuki explained.  
  
" Oh, I'm so sorry." I said, immediately feeling embarrassed and ashamed.  
  
" It's alright. There's no reason for you to be sorry." Yuki said, her voice never faltering.  
  
" Who's we?" I asked. " You said 'we came to live with Seto.'" I said.  
  
" We are me and my two little brothers, Yoshi and Yukio. They're my buddy boys." Yuki said, smiling.  
  
" Well, I'll introduce you to Yugi and Jounouchi if they ever get here. Those two are so easily distracted, it's sad." I said. Yuki laughed and I thought that she'd be a good new friend.  
  
*+*+*  
  
I had managed to talk Seto out of having me ride in a limo escort home with him. I wanted to stop by the boys' school to pick them up and walk them home. I looked through the fence at the playground. I spied the three I was looking for by the swing set. Mokuba was teaching Yukio how to swing by himself while Yoshi pushed when necessary. It was adorable to see them interacting like that. I pursed my lips and whistled, a simple, high- pitched sound that Yoshi and Yukio had learned to respond to at an early age. Now, Yoshi dragging Mokuba, they came running. I smiled as Yukio latched himself onto my waist.  
  
" Hiya!" he cried, hugging me tightly. I laughed.  
  
" That's enough, monster, you'll break me." I said. Yoshi and Mokuba grabbed each grabbed one of my hands and proceeded to tell me of their adventures for the day, which consisted of finding an unexplored nook on the playground, telling the class bully to bug off, and protesting when a mean teacher punished another student unjustly and winning. As far as they were concerned, they were heroes. I smiled at their cunning exploits.  
  
" Sissy, can I ride on your shoulders?" Yukio asked. I knelt down to his level.  
  
" Why?" I asked.  
  
" 'Cause I wanna be tall, like you!" the five-year-old cried. I hoisted him onto my shoulders and he sat there, pointing out odds and ends to me as we went. I made him get off and treated the trio to ice cream, after which we headed home. According to Mokuba, Seto was rarely home before eight, so I had time to spare. I watched Mokuba teach his eager pupils, Yoshi and Yukio, how to play a card game called Duel Monsters and picked up on it as they played a mock duel. It was actually pretty fun. Seto came home quietly, sneaking in and scaring the boys. I had seen him coming and didn't flinch.  
  
" Don't do that." Yoshi said, breathing a sigh of relief and clasping a hand to his chest. Yukio watched him and imitated what he did, carefully watching his big brother for his cues.  
  
" And who's gonna stop me, kid?" Seto asked, a small smile teasing his face.  
  
" Me!" Yukio announced loudly. I smiled.  
  
" You and what army?" Seto asked.  
  
" Me and this army!" Yukio said, showing Seto a handful of common Duel Monsters cards.  
  
" Hmm. I surrender, then. There's no way I can win against that." Seto said. Yoshi and Mokuba cheered at Yukio's bravery.  
  
" Alright, monsters, cut the racket and get ready for your baths." I cut in, earning a small chorus of moans. " I don't think so. Get your rears in gear and move." I said, pointing.  
  
" One more duel?" Yoshi asked. That boy never knew when to quit. I glowered at him from my position sitting on the couch. My glare had always been enough to get anyone moving, and this time was no exception. Seto dropped his suitcase and plopped down next to me on the couch. I pulled his legs up so that he was lying with his head on the arm of the couch and his legs were draped over my lap.  
  
" Teach me how to glare like that." Seto said. I laughed.  
  
" You don't need to glare. All you have to do is remind them where their allowance comes from." I said, earning a chuckle from Seto. He continued to doze for another half-hour before Yoshi and Mokuba appeared at the stairs.  
  
" Hey, Yuki! Can we stay up late and watch a movie?" Yoshi called.  
  
" Nope." I called back.  
  
" Why?" Mokuba moaned.  
  
" Cause it's a school night and you need your rest." I called patiently.  
  
" But-" Yoshi began to protest.  
  
" Do what Yuki says. Now." Seto growled, his eyes still closed and his voice low and even. The boys ran off to get into bed.  
  
" Better go tuck the littlest monster in." I said, shoving Seto's legs off of me.  
  
" Hurry back. You make a good foot rest." Seto said. I glared at him and he laughed.  
  
In Yukio's new room, the shrimp greeted me by shoving a book into my hands. It was some Egyptian legend for little kids that Yukio had always loved. I could remember Mom reading it to him on many a dark night. I sighed and shoved memories of Mom away. It was my turn to be mom now. I read the story to him, and by the time I had reached the last few pages, the kid was fast asleep. I pulled the blankets up around him and glanced around the room. It was cute, prefect for a little boy. There were dinosaurs painted on the walls, colorful, smiling and playing soccer. Littering the room were toys of every imaginable shape, size, and color. I had always maintained that Yukio was spoiled, but sometimes Seto didn't know when to stop. A shadow fell across the light from the doorway and I turned to see Seto leaning against the doorframe. He motioned for me to come to him and I came. Seto patted my head, a gesture from our childhood that he used to show affection for me.  
  
" Goodnight, Yuki." Seto said. I smiled up at him.  
  
" G'night, Seto." I said, walking off to my own room, that Seto had had set up just for me.  
  
I closed the door behind me. A habit from my old home. A closed door meant no visitors when it came to me, so I wasn't concerned with anyone walking in on me. Besides, all the boys were in bed and Seto had settled in for a few hours of computer work. I changed into my nightclothes and went about restlessly putting up more of my personal belongings that were still packed from the move. I was restless. My day hadn't been bad. Lonely, but not bad. I didn't get to see Seto, his classes were all different from mine and I hadn't been able to find him during lunch hour. But I had made a friend. Anzu, if I was remembering her name correctly. She had told me about her guy friends she hung out with. The name Yugi Motuo rung a bell in my head, but I couldn't place the familiarity to anything. I had resigned to ask Seto, but had forgotten in the coziness of my new home life.  
  
I wasn't looking forward to school tomorrow, but I figured I didn't have a choice. I had already made up my mind not to complain about anything. My mind was set in steely determination not to let anything get in my way of giving my brothers a healthy, happy family life. After all, that's what the five of us were now. Seto, Mokuba, Yoshi, Yukio, and I were a family now. And I would protect them. From what, I didn't know. I just had a funny feeling. My hand felt something hard in a small bag and I pulled it out. It was an old amulet my great-grandmother had given me many years ago…  
  
*+*+*  
  
" Yuki! Come here, child!" Grandmother called. I ran up to her. I was barely five, and not quite accustomed to being an older sister yet, as Yoshi was about eleven months old. Grandmother, really my great- grandmother, was my father's grandmother and in my mind, was the wisest person who ever lived.  
  
" Yes, Grandmother?" I asked, bowing my head respectfully as Papa and Mamma had always taught me to do when addressing my elders.  
  
" Child, you're a bouncing ball of energy! It's a miracle you can hold still at all." Grandmother said. I smiled.  
  
" Papa says that my energy is good for me. It helps me exercise so I can get big and strong." I said.  
  
" And he's right, of course!" Grandmother said, laughing. " You're such a thoughtful child, Yuki. And a lucky one too. You know that, right?"  
  
" Yes, Grandmother." I replied.  
  
" Well, then, I'll give you this. My papa found it many years ago when he was still and young man. It comes all the way from Egypt." Grandmother said, handing me a small golden ball on a leather cord. I took it and bowed respectful, uttering my thanks, before inspecting it.  
  
" Pretty!" I exclaimed, noticing a small eye engraved on side, the kind of eye ancient Egyptians used in their Pyramids.  
  
" It's a very old artifact, and my papa told me once that when he picked it up for the first time, he saw the image of a beautiful girl with hair of gold streaked with blood-red. Her eyes were violet melded with red, and she stood tall and strong, a light amid darkness. Exactly a year later, on that very day, he met my mother, who looked almost exactly like the girl from his vision. The only difference was in her eyes, which were blue, not red- violet. Papa told me that if I ever met a girl who looked like that one from his vision, I should give this to her. You are that girl, Yuki, I'm sure of it. So, your great-great-grandfather would want you to have this. This amulet has always brought it's owner good fortune, and it will so the same for you." Grandmother explained.  
  
" Wow. Does this really come from Egypt?" I asked.  
  
" Of course. It's very special, so you take good care of it. Some day it will help you when you need it most." Grandmother told me. I nodded solemnly…  
  
*+*+*  
  
I shook myself from my reverie. Dear old Grandmother. I missed her. Seemed like I was missing a lot of people lately. She had once shown me a picture of my great-great-grandmother in her wedding dress. Since she had married at sixteen, I, now at fifteen, was almost her exact image. But somewhere along the line, a freak gene had made my eye color different from the blues and greens of my family. My red-violet eyes were my unique feature that set me off from the rest of them. Unconsciously I gripped the amulet and then, on an impulse, strung it on my neck. It didn't look bad, and besides, a little luck never hurt anyone, granted it was good luck. I most certainly could use some. I sat down on my bed, inspecting the artifact. It was simple, perfectly round with the Egyptian eye engraved on the front. It hung from my neck by a simple leather strip. Somehow, deep in my ponderings, I drifted off into a peaceful sleep.  
  
The next day after school, I went to pick up the boys, this time with the notion in my head to visit Seto at Kaiba Corp. We walked along together, the boys munching on ice cream and I nibbling on a small cookie simply because I had a ravenous craving for a chocolate chip cookie. Yoshi and Mokuba were discussing Duel Monsters, Yukio adding in his opinions every time the two embattled debaters stopped for a breath, and I was lost in my own thoughts, watching the boys with a wary eye. Anzu had caught me before school right after Seto left me and introduced me to Yugi and Jounouchi. I was formal with them until they insisted I call them by their first names. Yugi was incredibly short, but instead of noting it, I pretended he was the same height as me. I think he likes it better if people don't mention it anyway. Apparently they had yet another friend, who, for unknown reasons, hadn't shown up at school. Jounouchi expressed a desire to go to their friend's house and check on him after school. Jounouchi was a bit of bragger and eager to impress me in any possible way, while Yugi was more interested in learning about me as a person and my past. I made an interesting discovery; my three new friends were all formidable players in Duel Monsters. It seemed to me that Duel Monsters was a fad around here. I decided it wasn't worth puzzling over. It was fun game, I didn't blame them. But still, a part of my mind protested that this was not a trivial fact and insisted on storing it away to be called on if the need arose.  
  
Mokuba seemed to have won the debate and was a little ahead of the rest of us, Yukio tailing him closely. I'll never know how I knew the black car was there, I just knew. In a flash I was up, pulling the Yoshi and Mokuba behind me. Somehow, Yukio slipped under my searching hand. I saw the big man in the black suit come after him and reacted. My fist flew out and caught him in the jaw while my other hand grabbed Yukio roughly and shoved him behind me. I have no idea how I knew these men were after the boys, again, I just knew. I stood over the boys, a feral snarl twisting my lips as I glared at them. I could see Kaiba Corp. from here. Seto was just over there… Suddenly, Yoshi seemed to regain an ounce of common sense and screamed with all his might, attracting attention the men in black didn't want. Mokuba and Yukio followed his example, and soon, they drew a crowd. I still stood over my boys, embattled and ready to fight to the bitter end to protect them. Then, as suddenly as they came, the men were gone. The unknowing crowd had done its work. I grabbed Yukio up and clutched him to me, grabbing Mokuba's hand and pushing Yoshi with my foot.  
  
" Run! Get into the building!" I barked, terror, panic, and anger seething inside me. Mokuba and Yoshi ran almost blindly, and Yukio clutched me in fear. We made it into the building, and Mokuba led the way to one of the top floors.  
  
" Seto!" Mokuba screamed, tearing out of the elevator. Yoshi followed hot on his trail, screaming the whole way.  
  
" The men in suits! They tried to take Yukio!" he bellowed. Seto was out of his office in a flash and met us half way. Mokuba and Yoshi flung themselves to him, both nearly in tears. Two little boys attached to his waist, Seto reached for me. I shoved Yukio into his arms and, finally satisfied that all the boys were safe, did the last thing my instincts bade me to do. I fainted. I just plopped down where I stood.  
  
I awoke a little while later to Anzu's face. I was surprised, to say the least.  
  
" Wha?" I asked, thoroughly confused. It all came back to me in a sudden, jumbled flash. " The boys! Where are they?!" I asked, somewhere close to panic.  
  
" They're in the other room with Kaiba and Yugi. Yugi's teaching them some Duel Monsters techniques to calm them down and Seto's making sure they're alright." Anzu said, pushing me back down as I tried to get up. " You rest. You took a real scare and gave us all one too. I've never seen Kaiba that scared before. He was really terrified." Anzu said.  
  
" What for?" I asked, still somewhat scared and bewildered.  
  
" You, of course. The way he told the story, you just dropped like a ton of bricks. I told him that was hardly surprising, considering the circumstances." Anzu said. I leaned back and breathed slowly. My heart rate quickened as I realized how close I had come to being run over as the black car had bore down on us, how close one of the men's fist had come to me. They had both missed by a sheer stroke of luck. Anzu left me alone to tell Seto I was awake, leaving me to ponder these happenings.  
  
*+*+*  
  
I sighed as little Yukio fell asleep in my arms. Terror had exhausted him, and me as well. But there was no time for me to sleep. I had to be ready, whatever the situation. Yuki might need me.  
  
Yugi sent the older boys off to play and I carried Yukio to a nearby couch where he curled up and slept.  
  
" Well, who do you think it was?" Yugi asked finally, after a moment of silence. We were still tense around each other, even after a year.  
  
" It's too bold a move to be any of Kaiba Corp.'s competitors. I'm not sure." I said. Yugi knew I was lying.  
  
" Well, personally, I know there are very few absolutes in this world. But one of them is that when goons in black suits come out of no where attacking our friends, it's either you or Pegasus. So, since it can't be you, Kaiba, it has to be Pegasus." He said. I chuckled only slightly.  
  
" Correct me if I'm wrong, but didn't you get rid of him?" I asked.  
  
" I helped, but it wasn't all me." Yugi answered, unconsciously clutching the strange pendant around his neck. An unspoken message passed between us and I nodded.  
  
" Then something's about to happen." I said. Yugi nodded. " Then that's my cue to start hiring body guards. I don't care what Yuki says, she and the boys are riding in an escort home from school." I said, moving toward the phone. I stopped when Anzu came in, closing the door softly behind her.  
  
" How's Yuki?" Yugi and I asked in unison.  
  
" Awake." Anzu responded. " A little shaken up, but no worse for the wear. If you think about it, she was really incredibly lucky."  
  
" Or just incredibly stupid. That girl is so stubborn! Why didn't she make a run for the building?" I asked, storming out of the room to have a word with Yuki. I could sense Yugi and Anzu exchanging a knowing look behind my back. I barged into the room where Anzu had taken Yuki and she looked up at me, slightly startled.  
  
" Why didn't you run for the building?" I asked, trying to maintain my voice level. " Who knows what kind of weapons those goons had! You could have been killed!"  
  
" I know." Yuki said.  
  
" That doesn't answer the question." I replied. " That car could have hit you, or one of them could've pulled a knife, or worse, a gun!"  
  
" I know." Yuki repeated, refusing to look me in the eye.  
  
" Then why?" I asked.  
  
" Because… I couldn't let anything happen to them. I've already lost so much, Seto. I don't want to add anymore names to the list." Yuki said. I knelt down before her. I didn't know why, but I was close to crying. My heart was thudding in my chest. I pressed my palm against the gentle, delicate curve of her face and forced her to look at me. She didn't really fight me.  
  
" You're way too stubborn." I said after a moment. I closed my eyes and smiled softly. I hugged her tightly, afraid that if I let her go, she would disappear. My heart continued to thud. Anzu was right. Yuki had been lucky. Too lucky.  
  
*+*+*  
  
That night I had a dream. I dreamed that I was curled up into a ball, drifting in a warm light. But the light was no comfort to me. I was crying, very hard. Everything just kept piling up until I just couldn't take it. Then, strangely, a voice reached my ears. It was coming from the necklace Grandmother had given me.  
  
" Please, don't cry. Tell me why you are crying." The voice requested softly.  
  
" I'm scared, alone, and confused. I feel so lost. I can't tell which path is the right path." I whispered back. Somehow, it didn't occur to me that talking back to a voice coming from an ancient artifact might not be a sign of sanity.  
  
" I was once lost and alone, too. I know it hurts. I can help you fight the fear and the confusion." The voice said. I sniffled and wiped my tears away, taking the small orb into my hands and looking at its eye.  
  
" You can?" I asked.  
  
" Yes." The voice confirmed.  
  
" How?" I asked.  
  
" Set me free, and I will show you." The voice said.  
  
" How do I set you free?" I asked.  
  
" When you are scared or upset, call to me." The voice said.  
  
" What should I call you?" I asked, still not recognizing the fact that talking to voices is usually a sign of insanity.  
  
" Call me… Himeko. Call me for what I am." The voice told me.  
  
" A princess? You're a princess?" I asked incredulously. Even in the dream, I was beginning to doubt my sanity.  
  
" I was." The voice replied. Then, the light went dark and I was alone in the darkness, save for the voice, Himeko. " This has been my home for a millennia. Set me free!" she requested. Then I woke up.  
  
I nearly jumped out of bed in cold sweat as I awoke from my dream, unconsciously grasping the orb in my hand. I remembered all of it so well, it was as though it had really happened. I wiped the sweat from my brow and couldn't help but wonder if the dream was real. I shook my head. Now was not the time to turn into a nutcase. I finally managed to soothe my heart and lull myself back to sleep.  
  
The next day was Saturday. I finally dragged myself from bed at about ten o'clock, but the only thing that got me up was the dull pain of hunger in my stomach. The boys were watching cartoons in their play room, which was equipped with a state of the art home entertainment system. I sighed and scrounged in the kitchen for something quick to eat. I didn't feel like bothering the cook, so I ate some cold cereal. Seto had probably gone to the office and would probably be back in a few hours, since it was Saturday. I had a while to hold out without him. I shoved memories of yesterday away. At least the boys had recovered quickly. I dumped my dishes in the sink and walked to the front door, having heard the sound of a limo pulling up to the front. I had been worried that the boys would be traumatized by the incident, but they seemed to be coping fairly well. I smiled at Seto as he strode confidently in, still in my boxer shorts and tee shirt. He, as usually, was dressed up in a fairly casual suit. He smiled back at me.  
  
" Morning. Sleep well?" he asked. I considered telling him about the dream I'd had, but then decided against it.  
  
" Yeah." I said, still slightly groggy from waking up.  
  
" Listen, how about you go out today with Anzu?" Seto asked. I cocked an eyebrow at him.  
  
" Since when do you get plan my life, Seto Kaiba?" I asked, still glaring. Seto smiled.  
  
" Since you don't spend nearly enough time around people our age." He retorted.  
  
" And what about you? You spend more time with the computer than you do with humans." I shot back, not in the mood to be pushed around.  
  
" That's different." Seto said, glaring back at me.  
  
" How is it different?" I asked.  
  
" That's work, to start with." Seto said. Then he sighed. " Yuki, just go, okay? See a movie, shop a little, do something besides take care of the boys. Moving here did not mean you had to give up your right to be a teenage girl." He pleaded.  
  
" What about you?" I repeated stolidly.  
  
" I'll take you out to dinner tonight if you go out today." Seto said. I considered.  
  
" Who'll watch the boys?" I asked.  
  
" There's this wonderful little thing called hired help." Seto cracked. I smiled.  
  
" What about your work?" I asked, throwing his excuse from earlier back at him.  
  
" Work can wait." Seto said.  
  
" For once." I added.  
  
" I'm beginning to see that you are having a problem with my work." Seto noted.  
  
" Oh, no, of course not. Only that it takes up most of your life." I cracked, turning and storming up the stairs. I was perfectly aware that Seto was following me. I tried to slam the door of my room in his face, but he blocked that by putting his foot in the door and stopping it. I wasn't really angry, and Seto knew it. But I really was having a minor problem with Seto's work hours. Seto followed me into the room and I threw a pillow at him. Unfortunately, he caught it and threw it back. Which evolved into a huge pillow fight.  
  
Finally, gasping, I laid down on the bed next to Seto.  
  
" I… win." Seto said, still gasping hard.  
  
" As if!" I cried through a deep breath.  
  
" Whatever." Seto said, shoving my arm off his chest. I watched him as he got up. He was tall, with an athletic build. Muscle and sinew were stretched tightly over strong bones. His hair was somewhere between short and long. His piercing blue eyes were somewhat mesmerizing, and his smile may have been a rare sight for everyone else, but for me it was like sunlight. Something deep inside my heart twitched, but I ignored it. Seto was my best friend. Nothing more.  
  
Seto did get his way with me. I went out with Anzu that day. We went to see a movie, and then we planned to go shopping afterwards. I was hoping to find myself a pair of sandals to wear in the coming warm weather. Anzu was out to add to her wardrobe. After the movie, and lunch, Anzu and I strolled leisurely down the street, not paying any attention to anything besides each other.  
  
" You're serious?!" I asked. Anzu smiled.  
  
" Yep, and the guy went insane immediately after that." Anzu said.  
  
" Wow." I murmured.  
  
" Yeah. Who would've thought my lil' Yugi could do that to anyone?" Anzu asked. I smiled teasingly.  
  
" I guess when you're in danger, the rules change for him." I teased.  
  
" Not funny!" Anzu cried, pushing me. I laughed as I sprawled into a big, burly man.  
  
" Oh, I'm so sorry!" I cried, trying to stifle my laughter. My laughter caught in my throat when a big, strong hand snagged my shoulder, hard.  
  
" You'll have to come with us, Miss." The big man said. I looked up in fear and recognized the big man that had tried to take Yukio only yesterday. I took a breath to scream, but I was whirled around to see Anzu in the grip of another thug with a gun in her side, her eyes wide and full of fear. I nearly fainted, but managed to remain standing. Suddenly, with incredible force, a voice welled up from deep in my heart. Call me! Now! it screamed at me. I screamed in my head with all my mental ability.  
  
Himeko! Don't ask me why I listened. I just did. But after that, I was barely able to grasp what was going on. All I knew was that I was no longer in control of my body. A far stronger woman had risen in my place.  
  
*+*+*  
  
I had been floating in darkness for… How long? Far too long to ever count. In the loneliness, I finally banished myself to eternal slumber until light fell upon me. So, for the first time in millennia, I opened my eyes and saw light. A beautiful, incredible light shining down from a small break in the darkness. Moving limbs that hadn't moved in so long, I moved toward it. Presently I became aware of crying. A girl crying. I reached with my essence, my soul, as I had been taught so long ago, to the source of the noise and felt out a soul almost identical to my own. There were small differences, but they were few and far between. I realized the owner of the soul was in a dream state and managed to form a picture of her physical appearance. She was young, younger than I had been when I was banished to this dark place. But other than a youthful softness around the face and eyes, she was my mirror image. I reached into the light and caressed her soul with my own.  
  
" Please don't cry. Tell me why you are crying." I pleaded.  
  
" I'm scared, alone, and confused. I feel so lost. I can't tell which path is the right path." The girl responded through her sad tears. Understanding, accompanied by painful memories.  
  
" I was once lost and alone, too. I know it hurts. I can help you fight the pain and confusion." I offered. The girl sniffed and tried to stop her crying.  
  
" You can?" she asked.  
  
" Yes." I confirmed.  
  
" How?" she asked.  
  
" Set me free, and I will show you." I bribed her. She wanted my help, I needed hers. I would do anything rather than be sent back to the darkness.  
  
" When you are scared or upset, call to me." I explained.  
  
" What should I call you?" the girl asked. I faltered and then searched her memory for an appropriate name that she could identify with. I couldn't give her the name my father had given me.  
  
" Call me… Himeko. Call me for what I am." I said. Again memories washed over me.  
  
" A princess? You're a princess?" the girl asked, somewhat incredulous. I didn't blame her. I would be too, in her situation.  
  
" I was." I said sadly. Then, gaining more power with each passing moment, I blocked the light the girl was floating in. " This has been my home for a millennia. Set me free!" I requested. The force of my request must have woken her up, for suddenly the darkness I knew so well incased me again.  
  
It seemed to be only moments later that I was suddenly aware. I was seeing! Seeing through human eyes! What I saw was not very comforting. I saw a girl in the clutches of a very mean-looking man in black holding a weapon of some sort to her side. It wasn't the girl from the light, but I could feel her presence. Suddenly afraid and fearless all at once, I ordered her to call to me. She did, and I rose into control of the girl's body. She slipped back to the far depths of her own mind, conscious, but only just. As I took control, I sifted through her memories, and in a sense, I became her. I became the girl called Yuki. Her pain was mine, and mine was hers. And suddenly I wanted to protect her friend, Anzu, as much as she did. Yuki's body molded and changed ever so slightly. Her shoulders narrowed, she shrank a few inches, and the kind softness of her face and eyes faded into my own hard features. I had emerged from the depths of the darkness to which I was banished so long ago. I was no longer able to distinguish the difference between her and myself. I was Yuki, and Yuki was me. We were the same person. I had died a millennia ago, but now I lived again. And my vengeance would fall upon those who had hurt me and the people I loved.  
  
A small smirk played on my lips. Yes, the Queen of Luck was back. And all hell was about to rise at her whim.  
  
*+*+*  
  
When the Yuki turned and saw me with a gun in my side, her eyes flew wide. She looked at me in the eye, and I could see her terror. Yet, somehow, her eyes became glazed over, as I had seen Yugi's sometimes do, as though she were listening to another voice that only she could hear. Then the changes began. They were small, barely notable. But I caught them. Her shoulders became slightly more narrow, a few inches melted from her height. The changes were subtle in her face, but her eyes were no longer the warm caring eyes that I knew. They had become cold and hard. Her outfit also morphed. She had stolen a boy's school uniform from Kaiba to make him mad and had been wearing that around. Now, it changed. The pants melted away to reveal long, shapely legs. The tail of the over coat lengthened until they almost dragged on the ground. Her hair color became more vivid, and almost seemed to stand up a little bit more, but it was still shoulder length. The collar was high and a black choker with silver studs formed around her neck. The jacket was tight and stopped at her hips, revealing what looked like a black bathing suit bottom that left her legs bare. In short, she looked like Yami Yugi, as a girl. I gawked, unsure as to what had just happened. Yuki smirked at our attackers.  
  
" I do believe that's my friend you're threatening there." She said, then tsked the thugs. " That's a no-no. I'm afraid you'll have to let Anzu go." She continued. I noticed something was off about her. Her voice was hard and cocky. It contained a certain smugness that didn't belong in humble Yuki, yet sounded all too familiar. I suddenly recalled Yami Yugi, Yugi's alter ego who had been at rest, useless for the time being. Yet this person that had replaced Yuki was clearly a girl, and there were small differences between her and Yami. She was at least a few inches taller, although just as narrow and skinny. Her hair was gold where his was crimson, crimson where his was golden. Her hair also laid down.  
  
" And what if we decide not to?" one thug asked Yuki. Yuki smiled.  
  
" That would not be a smart decision." She said.  
  
" Well, we're not letting either of you go. You have to come with us." The thug said, not in the least intimidated. Yuki's smirk grew.  
  
" Oh, is that so? And why do we have to go with you?" she asked.  
  
" The Boss said so." The apparently not too bright thug responded.  
  
" Oh? And who is your boss?" Yuki asked, growing more confident by the minute.  
  
" That's a secret." The thug responded.  
  
" Ah, that's too bad. Oh well. I'll know all your secrets if you don't let Anzu and I go right now." Yuki said, pausing to crack her knuckles. I looked desperately around the alley where Yuki and I had been drug. There was no one to call for help. No one would hear us.  
  
" Huh?" the big oaf muttered, suddenly afraid. I didn't blame him. I was too.  
  
" I summon the power granted to me by the contract sealed by the hand of Anubis! Dark Eternity!" Yuki called, her voice deep and commanding. Not the Yuki I had met on a lonely lunch break at all. Both thugs fell like a ton of bricks. Yuki stood over them for one silent moment, looking almost sad, then she collapsed. So did I.  
  
I awoke later and was relieved to find the thugs still unconscious. I was surprised to realize I had known exactly where I was the second I woke up. I was glad though, because I instantly remembered Yuki and crawled over to her.  
  
" Yuki! Are you okay?" I asked, shaking her shoulder. I was relieved to see her normal clothes in the place of the weird ones. Yuki opened her eyes and sat up. The hard, cold eyes were gone, and Yuki was truly in her own body again.  
  
" Uh… What happened? Why are we in an alley?" Yuki asked. I blinked at her.  
  
" You don't remember?" I asked.  
  
" Um, no. Should I?" Yuki asked, staring at me blankly.  
  
" Never mind. Call Kaiba on your cell phone and tell him to send a ride." I told her. Yuki obediently took out her cell and dialed, leaving me to wonder what had happened to her. 


	2. Level of Difficulty: Deadly

Yuki  
  
By: Rogue Fox  
  
Part Two… Level of Difficulty: Deadly  
  
  
  
I settled into my chair at my large desk in the mansion. My eyes flitted over to a picture from a few years ago. In it, Yuki and I are smiling down at the photographer, who happened to be Yuki's mom, from a tree. Yuki and I are sitting on the same branch together, and my arms are around her waist. I smiled. Those were good times. I thought about Yuki, instead of pulling paperwork from my briefcase. I could picture her innocent smile so clearly. She was a beautiful girl, yet she never even tried to be pretty. She was actually much more comfortable wearing boys' clothes. Someone like her deserved a much better life than what she had gotten, always fighting for every inch of respect and gratitude she had. My heart started to thump and blood rushed to my cheeks. Yuki was my best friend. You don't think of friends like that, I scolded myself. My personal cell phone suddenly rang. It was a number only used by family and friends. Even Yugi Motou had it, incase of emergencies. I hit the button and put it to my ear, calling up a program on my computer at the same time.  
  
" Hello?" I asked.  
  
" Hey, Seto, it's me." Yuki's voice came across the line. " Could you send a ride for me and Anzu?" she asked.  
  
" A ride? Why?" I asked, confused, but somehow worried. Suddenly I got the impression that Yuki wasn't the one to be asking. " Put Anzu on." I demanded. I could here shuffling and Yuki's voice as the phone was handed over.  
  
" Hello?" Anzu's voice asked.  
  
" What the heck's going on?" I asked, unable to swallow my fear.  
  
" Kaiba, we got pounced by some thugs in black suits. Get us a ride, I don't know if they have reinforcements." Anzu immediately said. Wonderful, I thought.  
  
" Where are you?" I asked, picking up a pen and preparing to scribble on a piece of paper. After Anzu gave me the address, I wrote it down. " Okay, stay there. Don't go anywhere. And tell me everything when you get here. I'll call Yugi and get him over here." I told Anzu.  
  
" Get everyone over." Anzu corrected.  
  
" What? Why?" I asked.  
  
" I'll tell you later. Just do it, okay?" Anzu said. And with that, she hung up. I hung up the cell and felt a wave of fear and anxiety wash over me. Yuki had sounded okay when I had spoken to her, but now I was no longer sure.  
  
*+*+*  
  
I believed Yuki easily when she told us in frustration that she had absolutely no recollection of the story Anzu told. If my suspicions were correct, then it only justified them. I was beginning to suspect that Yuki was no ordinary girl. She probably didn't know it, but the unusually shiny orb around her neck had caught my eye. And I knew without really trying, just by sensing it, that there was something new in Yuki, something hidden. Someone hidden. Someone sleeping in the depths of her soul, just waiting to draw breath on her own again. I could feel Yami stir. That worried me more. If Yami was stirred by someone, it usually meant trouble. Most people he just ignored. I also felt a certain anxiety from him when I thought about Yuki, especially when I pictured her mentally. Then he seemed to get really upset, although he would never permit me to find out what was upsetting him. I got sick of listening to Jounouchi, Kaiba, and Honda question Yuki like she was on trial and pushed them aside.  
  
" Yuki, can I see your necklace?" I asked. Too annoyed with the other three to do otherwise, she handed me the necklace. The second it was in my hands, I fought the urge to run away with it. I could feel the power of it. It was a Millennium Item, undoubtedly. And a darker part of me wanted to take it for myself. But I wouldn't allow that and handed the necklace back to Yuki. She pretty much ignored me as I thanked her and put it back on her neck, deeply absorbed in an argument that had developed between her and Kaiba.  
  
" Seto Kaiba, if you even mention the prospect again, I swear I'll beat you to a pulp!" Yuki screamed at him. Kaiba actually winced.  
  
" Could you stop hurling threats and listen for a moment?" he shouted back. I'd honestly never seen Kaiba let anyone rile him up like that.  
  
" I'm not letting you hire body guards for me! Absolutely not!" Yuki yelled, turning her back on Kaiba and storming toward the door. Mai, who had just arrived, hurried to get out of her way. Kaiba strode confidently after her and caught up to her in a few steps and whirled her around. Yuki slapped him as a reward, and hard. I heard the smack clear across the room, followed by a hollow silence. A red hand print marked Kaiba's left cheek, and I could tell from where I stood that it would bruise.  
  
" Ouch." Jounouchi muttered.  
  
" No kidding." Honda agreed with him. Kaiba made no movement but stared blankly at Yuki, who glared back at him angrily. Slowly, he raised a hand to his cheek and rubbed it softly, wincing. Yuki didn't soften. Everyone else remained in a shocked silence.  
  
" That… hurt." Kaiba said finally.  
  
" Well, that was the point!" Yuki exclaimed. Kaiba immediately regained his composure and resolve. But I had seen the look in his eye. The same look Jounouchi wore when Mai smacked him, the same look I knew haunted my eyes when Anzu slapped me. A look of disbelief and confusion, trying to figure out if she really meant that. And also a bit of hurt, wondering what we had done to deserve that and how we could apologize.  
  
" Still, I'm hiring body guards." Kaiba said resolutely. I smiled in amusement. As deep as their friendship ran, they still argued. Yuki glared at him nastily enough to have stopped a speeding car while Kaiba stood there coolly. " You can glare at me till you're blue in the face, Yuki, but that doesn't change anything."  
  
" Don't make me smack you again!" Yuki threatened, holding up her hand to enforce the threat. Having felt her wrath once, Kaiba wasn't impressed.  
  
" Sure. Go ahead." He offered, sticking his right cheek out for her. " Give me a matching bruise for the other side." I stifled laughter as Yuki fumed and stomped her foot.  
  
" Seto Kaiba! If I ever speak to you again, it'll be a miracle!" she screamed so loudly, I was sure her little brothers and Mokuba could hear her all the way outside.  
  
" Miracles happen more often than you think. Besides, wouldn't that be kind of hard, considering that we live in the same house?" Kaiba asked. He was smirking a little too cockily. Yuki snatched up a paperweight from Kaiba's desk and hurled it at him as quickly as I could blink. She didn't bother to stay and see if her aim had been true, turning and storming out the door. Seto jumped out of the way, but her actions had caught him by surprise. He glanced after her and then took chase.  
  
" Hey! Who said we were finished?" he called, running after Yuki.  
  
" Me!" Yuki yelled back.  
  
" I thought you weren't speaking to me!" Kaiba called.  
  
" I'm not! I'm screaming!" Yuki hollered. Those of us left stared after them.  
  
" Um, should I ask?" Mai questioned.  
  
" No." Jounouchi said simply.  
  
" I said NO! I will NOT be escorted around like some pampered POODLE!" Yuki screamed from somewhere else in the mansion. I winced.  
  
" Who said you get a CHOICE in the MATTER?" Kaiba bellowed back.  
  
" Oh, boy." Honda mumbled, rubbing his temples.  
  
" Who knew Kaiba could yell that loud?" Anzu asked.  
  
" You don't boss ME around!" Yuki bawled.  
  
" May I remind you whose HOUSE this IS?" Kaiba retorted.  
  
" I motion that we get out of here before they decide to really start fighting." I suggested. Everyone else agreed readily, and we ducked through the line of flying objects that Yuki was hurling, and the enraged retorts Kaiba was throwing back. We left quickly. The last thing any one of us wanted was to have their anger directed at us. Kaiba would probably get his way with Yuki.  
  
It was two days later that any of us saw Kaiba or Yuki. Kaiba had a black eye at school on Monday, swollen shut, was limping ever so slightly, and his cheek was marked with a black and blue handprint. Yuki was a walking testimony to Kaiba's great reserve and patience, for there wasn't a mark on her. But her pride was undoubtedly greatly injured. And Kaiba, for all the wear, did appear to have won. The pair was accompanied by five burly bodyguards. And Yuki was taking her loss none to gracefully. She stalked toward us, pausing only to flash Kaiba a surly glare, and Anzu followed her toward some remote spot where they could talk in peace. I cocked an eyebrow up at my old nemesis.  
  
" It appears you won." I said, smiling only slightly.  
  
" I may have won the battle, but definitely not the war. She'll pick up where she left off when she gets the chance." Kaiba replied knowingly. " She's way too stubborn for her own good." He added. I smiled.  
  
" But she's worth it, isn't she?" I asked.  
  
" Worth every one of these bruises, and whatever more I get before this war's over." Kaiba agreed. " Besides, I probably deserved some of them."  
  
" Trouble in paradise, I guess?" Jounouchi asked, approaching us.  
  
" It was never paradise." Kaiba retorted, giving Jounouchi a fish eye look.  
  
Surprisingly enough, the two of them had made up before the day was out. Kaiba remained firm that the bodyguards stayed, but they had a talk and Yuki seemed to consent, under protest, to Kaiba. Yuki, Anzu, and I had a class together after lunch. I managed to get a hold of Yuki during that class, which, due to some freak luck, was a study hour.  
  
" Hey, Yuki. Can I talk to you?" I asked, drawing her away from a Duel Monsters duel.  
  
" Yeah, sure. That game looks kind of fun." She said, motioning to the Duel.  
  
" It is. I'll show you how sometime, if you want." I offered. I could feel Yami stir ever so slightly.  
  
" That's nice of you, but I wouldn't want to be a burden. I'll use it as an excuse to get Seto away from his work." She said, smiling slyly. " So what do you want to talk to me about?" she asked.  
  
" That." I said, pointing to her necklace. The little shiny orb with the eye on it glimmered in the light.  
  
" What, this? It's a good luck charm my great-grandmother gave me when I was little." Yuki said.  
  
" What do you know about it?" I asked her. Yuki frowned.  
  
" I know it's an artifact from Egypt my great-great-grandfather found exactly a year before he met his wife. But that's about it." She said. I nodded. Things were adding up.  
  
" Have you noticed anything odd about it?" I asked. Yuki's eyes clouded ever so slightly, remembering something.  
  
" Well, the night after I started wearing it, I had a dream about a voice coming from it." She offered. " I probably ate something that didn't agree with me before bed." She added. Probably not, I silently corrected.  
  
" What did the voice say in the dream?" I asked, grateful for Yuki's minor naivete.  
  
" I'm not sure. It seems really foggy now, but I remember one thing. It said its name was Himeko." Yuki answered.  
  
" Hey, Yuki! Come here!" Anzu called. Yuki excused herself and darted over to her. I stayed behind and slunk to a desk away from everyone else to consider what Yuki had told me. There was no doubt in my mind that Yuki had a Millennium Item now. The problem was how she had a Millennium Item. All the seven of them had owners and were accounted for, or so I thought. Perhaps there was an eighth no one knew about. Yami stirred again and then slipped deeper into the depths of our heart, as though he didn't want to be anywhere near consciousness. I considered dragging him up and making him explain this to me, but the fact that he chose that time to sink down as low as he could go told me he wouldn't have cooperated anyway. I left him alone for the moment. But I would get what I needed from him at the first possible chance. No one knew how to make him talk like I did, which was probably why he was avoiding me. I winced, realizing I was worrying too much again. But there was a lot for me to worry about. What with two attacks on Yuki, I had reason to worry. I couldn't help but wonder the possibility that maybe this person who kept sending thugs after Yuki knew about her Millennium Item and wanted it. Each Millennium Item was unique. Our stupid luck would be that Yuki's was very powerful, and thus very desirable. The only way to know would be to induce Yuki into unknowingly calling the spirit in the Item and letting Yami take a look at her. If he recognized her, I'd have what we needed to know within the next few hours, with or without Yami's consent. If not, well, there goes the only lead I had. I decided to try it. The worst that could happen was things going terribly wrong…  
  
*+*+*  
  
I tried hard to ignore the bodyguards. I really did. But they were there, all the same. Very imposing in those black suits. I wondered how I would be able to tell them apart from the real thugs if they decided to show again. What really bothered me was that I had let Seto win. I knew full and well that I could've won that argument. Seto knew it too. But for some odd reason, I had decided to let him have the victory. I tossed my fretting aside and went to the fence around the playground where I picked the boys up every day. I scanned the playground, searching for the telltale two blonde heads and the black one following close behind. I couldn't find them and made a small noise of alarm.  
  
" Is something wrong, Miss?" one of the bodyguards, Takeo, asked.  
  
" It's nothing, I'm sure. I just can't seem to find the boys. I'll ask the teacher." I said, nodding to the teacher supervising the children. I slipped into the playground and inquired to the teacher about the kids.  
  
" Three men in black suits came and picked them up, Ms. Yuki. They said you sent them." She told me. My breath caught in my throat. It couldn't be.  
  
" That's impossible! I didn't send for them! I always come pick them up!" I shrilled. Takeo and the other four bodyguards jogged over to me. I struggled to calm myself. " Did you ask to see their ID? All the bodyguards we employed have a special ID to show they work for us." I said. The teacher shook her head no. I gasped. " You mean you just let my little brothers go with strange men?"  
  
" Miss, please. Perhaps you should call Mr. Kaiba." Takeo suggested. I nodded and fumbled with my cell. I used the memory to dial Seto's personal cell number. I listened to the rings, trying to soothe my panicked heart back into a steady beat. Its erratic pace was pounding in my temples painfully.  
  
" Hello?" Seto's voice finally sounded in my ear. He sounded slightly annoyed but I didn't care.  
  
" Seto!" I shrilled at him over the phone. My brain went blank. What could I tell him? Yoshi, Yukio, and Mokuba were missing? They may have been kidnapped? What could I possibly say to him?  
  
" Yuki, what's the matter?" Seto asked, sensing my distress.  
  
" I screwed up! It's all my fault!" I blurted out.  
  
" Whoa, slow down, Yuki. What's wrong? What's your fault?" Seto asked. His voice was calm and soothing. My heart rate slowed just listening to him. I wished feverishly that he could have been there with me, so he could wrap his strong arms around me. I would lean my head against his chest and let him make all my troubles go away.  
  
" The boys!" I wailed. " I can't find them!"  
  
" Calm down, Yuki. I'm sure they're just playing." Seto said. I could hear the sharp edge of fear push into his voice.  
  
" They're not! The teacher says that three men in black suits showed up and took them! They said I sent them to pick the boys up!" I cried. There was a silence.  
  
" Did you?" Seto asked finally.  
  
" No!" I wailed back.  
  
" Think hard. Are you sure?" Seto asked.  
  
" I'm sure! Very sure!" I said, laughing somewhat hysterically. Seto let out a string of curse words nasty enough to put the dirtiest talker to shame. " You can say that again!" I cracked. My brain was gone. My heart was frantic. I was in no way in control of my body.  
  
" Yuki, you stay there, okay? Don't move. I'm coming to get you. This has gone too far." Seto said. He was by no means finished with his cursing. He was still going as he hung up.  
  
A few minutes later, Seto came by and picked me up, in a hysterical state of mind and blabbering unintelligibly, and drove me to Kaiba Corp. Once there, I was shocked to find Yugi, Anzu, Jounouchi, and Honda waiting.  
  
" Would I be correct in assuming that this latest development means that we'll be taking the offense?" Yugi asked. A small smirk played on his lips.  
  
" Offense my foot. You can make your own decisions, but Yuki and I are going in to hit them where it hurts the most and reclaim what is ours." Seto growled. I blabbered on, almost completely unaware of anything else. Quite suddenly, I felt a sharp sting in my chest. I shut up abruptly.  
  
Knock off the yacking! Are you going to save them, or what? a hard voice asked. I reeled a little.  
  
What can I do? I wailed. I'm the one that caused this whole mess! I didn't tell their teachers to ask for the ID! It's all my fault! I'll just screw things up worse. I cried. I felt another sharp sting in my chest.  
  
Snap out of it! the voice snapped at me. I sniffled indignantly. You're tougher than this, I know it. So quit acting like a manic-depressant and go save your little brothers! the voice said.  
  
Okay. I thought back softly. Himeko. I added. I felt her power flow into me. I knew then. Something about this situation was very different from anything normal. And very suddenly, I saw Himeko for what she truly was. Another person, another soul living in me. With startling clarity, I was able to distinguish her being from mine. And that realization sent me reeling into the depths of my own mind.  
  
*+*+*  
  
I had listened to Yuki blabbering long enough. I had snapped at her, and now I wondered at my own concern for her. Was she not just a carrier? Someone to carry me while I was inactive, a body for me to use? What had I done wrong? Yuki was just a transport, little more than something for me to use. Why had I grown so attached to her? When had I grown so attached to her? And with these thoughts, my own sense of being returned. Yuki was Yuki, and I was me. Two separate people. I was aware of her as she became aware of me, reeling away at her own realization.  
  
Who are you? she sputtered. What's happening to me? she asked fearfully, sensing the changes her own body was undergoing as it transformed to suit me.  
  
I'm Himeko. I said, more to myself than her. I am! I! I knew the meaning of the word! There was a me, and it had nothing to do with Yuki.  
  
Himeko? How long have you been in my head? Yuki asked suspiciously. I strained to tell how much time had passed since I had taken up lodging here. Hadn't I always been here? No, that wasn't right. Then surely I had been here a very long time? That wasn't right either. I was still wrestling with the idea of being my own separate self. Then the memories came. The swarmed over me, engulfing me in their midst. I remembered with startling clarity. Yes, that was me… Him… I remembered him, I also missed him. Would I ever find him? He promised me… That's my name! Himeko… That's just a name for Yuki to call me. This isn't real. I was dead, and that realization nearly shattered me. Yes, I was merely a poor image of the person I had been, locked away for a millennia and called upon again to serve in a new war against the Shadow Games. I used to be called the Queen of Luck, with good reason. I hid my memories from Yuki. Better if she didn't know for now. Instead I opened my, no, her, no that's not right either, our eyes. Our eyes. Yuki slipped away from the controls of her body. She sensed my needs without thinking. I would help her get her brothers back, because that was my purpose here, the spirit of a dead person. To guide, help, and protect her. And now she needed me to control our body so that she could sort out her emotions. I looked at the handsome boy she called Seto. She was very attached to him. I wondered how she had maintained their friendship, with that handsome face and those intense eyes. I looked away quickly. The soul of a dead person has no reason to get crushes. Dead… How could I possibly be dead? I remembered everything so clearly. The agony, the sorrow, the desperation, but most of all, I remembered the anger. The pure and unharnessed rage I felt, the pure hatred of the one who had brought my demise about. I could picture my loved ones' faces so clearly, so perfectly. I could remember the exact way her hair framed her face, the exact way he would smile at me when I made a joke, the very way she laughed, and the very way he cried. Nothing had been able to save them, not me, not the power I had been granted, not even the supposedly all-powerful gods. I had loved them, loved them with my entire being, but my love was small and powerless against the darkness that surrounded us. They had died. We had died. Died for a lost cause, a cause that had died with us. The many years after our deaths were written in history that I had read from Yuki's memory. Our cause, our source of strength, had perished. Slowly. Slowly she had dwindled from the great reaches of a powerful empire that touched all the farthest and most exotic places into a little patch of sand in a desert no one but scientists and treasure-hunters cared about. Her death had been long and painful. Slowly I slipped into a state of hysteria. Yuki sensed my disruption and tried to take the controls of her body back, but I shoved her away.  
  
Stay back! I snarled.  
  
Himeko, give me back control! Yuki cried at me. I ignored her. I could hear and see again. I was in control of a living body. All I could see was an image of the girl I had been, and a miserable realization that that girl had died. I was dead. More importantly, everything I had every loved, everyone I had ever loved, was dead too. I was alone in a world I didn't even understand. The only thing that kept me company was Yuki's screams of protest, trapped by a stranger in her own head.  
  
*+*+*  
  
Yuki had collapsed onto a couch. She had finally stopped blathering on like a nut and sank down to the couch, her eyes glazed over. Kaiba kept tossing her nervous glances, but other than that, she was ignored. I was the only one that was concerned by the blank, empty look on her face. The look of a face that no one was controlling. Then, suddenly, her features molded a little. I could see the small orb around her neck glowing. Yami stirred in my heart, raising himself to a state of semi-consciousness so he could see what had grabbed my interest so suddenly. I snared him mentally and held him in his stupor of having just woken up. A harder Yuki stared out of empty eyes. A new, meaner looking Yuki. Then, with the rage and fury of a trapped animal, she screamed, ending it with a feral snarl. Her cold features were twisted into rage and madness. A madness I knew. The madness of someone who had realized something they dreaded. Yuki wasn't in control. Someone far more dangerous was ruling her body. Kaiba rushed toward her, but she tossed him aside like it was nothing. Yami was rising to full power, barely contained beneath my own consciousness.  
  
Back off. he ordered me. I ignored him. Back off. I know how to deal with her. he told me. I paid him no heed until he threw me away from our bodily controls and took over. Yuki, or the person controlling her body, sensed the changes I underwent as Yami assumed control.  
  
Everyone was watching. They gawked at Yuki. Quiet, humble, reserved Yuki had cracked. She had finally caved into the pressure and fear. And no one looked at her more fearfully than Kaiba. He stood from where he had fallen, staring at Yuki as though he was trying to figure something out. Yuki stared back at him. It bought us time, time to complete the change.  
  
" Who are you?" Kaiba asked finally. Yuki's body jerked.  
  
" I'm… Yuki." She said. Kaiba's face twisted angrily.  
  
" You are not. I haven't got a clue who or what you are, but you're not Yuki." He growled. The girl stared at him sadly.  
  
" I… don't know what I am. I don't know who I am." She murmured. At that exact moment, Yami completed his transformation and stepped toward her. Yuki paused to consider him.  
  
" Don't be afraid." Yami murmured to her gently. Yuki glared at him.  
  
" Stay away from me." She spat at him.  
  
" You're not the girl who was born in that body." Yami whispered. He took another tentative step.  
  
" I said stay away!" Yuki growled.  
  
" You're out of control. I understand your anger and your fear. You have to give Yuki back her body." Yami said softly. He held out our hands, showing he meant no harm. I marveled at how well he knew everything she would do.  
  
" You couldn't possibly understand." Yuki snarled at him.  
  
" I understand. I'm just like you. We can learn why this has happened together. You have to calm yourself. Let Yuki take control. Go to sleep. Sleep, and the rest will sort itself out." Yami murmured comfortingly.  
  
" I will not sleep! Stay back!" Yuki screamed.  
  
" Sleep." Yami crooned. Slowly, Yuki's eyes seemed to droop.  
  
" Yuki, the real Yuki, I know you hear me. Don't be afraid. You have to be firm with her. She's scared right now, and she can't control herself. Be firm, but gentle." Yami continued, ignoring Yuki's dying protests. Slowly, her features molded again, back into the Yuki I knew. Then, Yami retreated without another word. Yuki glanced around, her own natural softness having totally reemerged.  
  
" Yuki?" Kaiba asked.  
  
" Yes?" Yuki responded, just before she fell to the ground, consumed in slumber.  
  
*+*+*  
  
" She lost control. She went mad with rage and fear and despair. Think at from her point of view. She's in a world she doesn't understand, and she's just figured out she's actually dead. Exactly how would you feel?" Yugi asked, looking pointedly at me.  
  
" Pretty mixed up?" Jounouchi volunteered.  
  
" I'd be ready to break something." Anzu said.  
  
" No kidding." Mai agreed. I glanced down at Yuki and smoothed her hair out.  
  
" What about Yuki?" I asked.  
  
" She's dealing the only way she knows how. The same way I dealt with it at first. She's shutting down all but her most essential bodily functions and sleeping until the storm dies down. If her body isn't awake, then there's nothing for the girl inside her to control." Yugi explained. I glanced down again at the girl in my arms, her head nestled against my chest. I hugged her tightly, afraid to let her go.  
  
" How will she deal with it when she can't sleep anymore?" I asked. Yugi's shoulders slumped and his face fell.  
  
" I don't know. Everyone deals with it different. Bakura pretends it never happened, for example. The only way to know how Yuki will deal with it is to wait and see." He said.  
  
" How did you deal with it?" Anzu asked. Yugi looked up at her.  
  
" The best way I could. It's hard to explain. The best way I know how to explain it is that we found a middle ground. A way that we both can be at least partially happy." Yugi told her.  
  
" Will Yuki ever be able to be happy again?" I asked.  
  
" That depends on her." Yugi said after a moment of silence. " And on the other girl." He added. Yuki's eyes fluttered open suddenly, and she looked up at me.  
  
" Hmm? How long have I been asleep?" she asked, glancing around the room.  
  
" A few hours." I told her, searching for something else to say. What could I say to her?  
  
" Yuki, what do you remember?" Yugi asked quickly, cutting straight to the chase in a way I hadn't been able to.  
  
" More than I'd like to. It's a little fuzzy, but I remember." Yuki told him, scooting closer to me involuntarily and cradling her head in her hands.  
  
" How long has she been there? Inside you?" Yugi asked. Everyone gathered around and fell silent as Yuki thought about the question.  
  
" It's hard to say. Not long, I think. I had a dream a few nights ago and I think that's when it started." She said finally.  
  
" How can it be that hard to tell how long she's been there?" Honda asked irritably.  
  
" It's hard." Yuki assured him. " It seemed like, for a while, she was… how can I put it… like she was a part of me. There was no distinction between the two of us, you know?" she said, looking at me again, checking to see if I understood. " And when we both realized there was a difference, that we were two different people, she went over the deep end."  
  
" Yuki, this is important." Yugi said. Yuki turned to concentrate on him, unknowingly gripping my shirt. " Do you know why she went crazy on you?"  
  
" She remembered something. Something she didn't want to remember. I knew she was going to do something crazy, but I couldn't control her." Yuki said, finally hiding her face against me. I let my lips turn into a small half smile. " That's right…" Yuki mumbled suddenly. " That's right. We have to save the boys." She said, jumping out of my arms and striding confidently toward the door. I followed her quickly.  
  
*+*+*  
  
" Out of all the things I've done, I've never ridden in a plane." Honda said, gripping the arm of his chair tightly. I laughed as Jounouchi hit him over the head with a magazine.  
  
" You're pathetic. It's just like riding in a car, except much smoother." He said. Seto grinned next to me, hiding his face behind the newspaper he was reading.  
  
" And there's the little fact that we're going to be thirty thousand feet up in the air." Honda added. Mai and Anzu combined forces and threw empty plastic cups at him.  
  
" Shut up!" Anzu yelled. Honda ducked under the same magazine Jounouchi had hit him with.  
  
" Play nice, children." Yugi intoned patronizingly.  
  
" Shut your trap!" Honda growled.  
  
" Now, that wasn't nice." I said, frowning playfully.  
  
" This is your captain speaking. We will now be taking off." A voice over the intercom said calmly.  
  
" Well, see? He doesn't sound worried at all, Honda." Mai said.  
  
" That's what I pay him to do." Seto said.  
  
" So in other words, he could be scared out of his mind and we wouldn't know it because he wants to keep his paycheck.' Honda said.  
  
" He's a pilot, not an actor." Seto said.  
  
" Buckle your seatbelt, Jounouchi!" Mai cried, reaching over him and hitting him with his seatbelt.  
  
" Yes, Mai dear." Jounouchi growled.  
  
" Got your seat in the upright position?" Mai asked. Jounouchi scowled at her.  
  
" Yes, I do. I've ridden on a plane before, you know?" he told her. Mai grinned and patted his cheek.  
  
" Well, someone's gotta look out for you, lil' Jou." She said. Jounouchi fumed at her.  
  
" Ah! We're moving!" Honda cried.  
  
" Pretend it's a car, Honda." I called comfortingly.  
  
" It's a car, it's a car, it's a car… Yah! Why does it have to go so fast?!" he asked frantically.  
  
" That's how it gets off the ground, Honda." Yugi said slowly.  
  
" Off the ground?!" Honda cried.  
  
" The car, Honda?" I asked.  
  
" It's a car, it's a car… I don't even like riding in cars! Ah! We're off the ground!" Honda screamed.  
  
" That's the general point of flying, Honda." Seto called. Our seats were a little away from the others. " How are you doing?" he asked me, tapping my shoulder to get my attention.  
  
" As well as can be expected, I guess. I'm worried about them." I murmured softly. Seto patted my head and then grasped my hand.  
  
" They'll be fine. They know we love them, and they know we'll come for them." He told me.  
  
" But where do we start looking?" I asked him. Seto didn't say anything to me, instead looking away and giving me a non-committal grunt. That meant he either didn't have a clue or was playing a hunch and didn't want me to know either way. He liked to play it cool and make me think that he knew exactly what he was doing, when in reality he was as lost as the rest of us. I knew he did it to put me at ease.  
  
" Hey," Seto whispered, taking my hand again and squeezing it. " You're sure you're okay?" he asked. I squeezed his hand back.  
  
" Of course I'm sure." I reassured him, forcing a smile with no feeling behind it. Seto believed me almost as much as I believe myself. " Why do you ask?" I asked him.  
  
" Because you're not yourself." Seto told me bluntly. I sighed and slumped into my seat, swallowing to make my ears pop as we climbed higher into the sky.  
  
" I'll be okay." I told him. " It's just a little hard to deal with this all at once. Himeko, and the boys… Sometimes it seems like I'm going to blow up." I let my voice trail off. This was my reality, and I had to deal with it. No one ever said it would be fun or that I had to like it, but I did have to deal with it. And Himeko, as much as I tried to ignore her, was a part of my reality. To be honest, I was scared of her. Scared of her, all that she was capable of, and of the part of me she brought out, the darkness in my own soul she dragged into the light when she took control. I didn't trust her as I had trusted her when she had first come to me. I knew what she was capable of now, knew the unbelievable power that coursed through her veins. But I also knew her fear and desperation, her anger at something she could barely even comprehend in her current state. I understood it. Something stirred in my heart, and I strained to focus on it. I could vaguely sense Himeko there, sleeping peacefully. I was hardly able to find her, she had hid herself from me to protect me from a nervous breakdown. I wondered at her, wished I could talk to the girl who shared my heart and mind. But I dared not wake her, for fear she would try to get control. Her will had been like a tidal wave compared to a drop of water next to mine. I had been completely unable to withstand her will. I was afraid, and for the first time in my life I was afraid for myself. The very idea frightened me even more. I had to remember who I was fighting for. The ones who I loved.  
  
I glanced at Seto, who had given up trying to concentrate on his newspaper and was looking absently out the window. I studied his profile carefully, memorizing every detail. My best friend in the whole world, the only one I dared to trust with the little boys whose lives I valued more than my own. I cared for him as much as I cared for them. And I would protect him, I vowed to myself silently. I will protect him from the evil I feel drawing closer by the minute. 


	3. Into The Shadows

Yuki  
  
By: Rogue Fox  
  
Part Three: Into The Shadows  
  
I dropped my luggage as I walked into the hotel room Seto had gotten for us girls. Mai immediately squealed and ran over to the window. She threw open the curtains to reveal a gorgeous view.  
  
" Wow." Anzu murmured.  
  
" Look at that! It's the Nile! It's really the Nile!" Mai cried. " And look over there! You can see the Pyramids! Wow, it's so beautiful!" I murmured a few noises of awe, but mostly I kept silent. I could feel Himeko in the depths of my heart, and it was slightly distracting. I longed to reach out to her, to let her know that I would try to help her, but she was deeper than I dared go. And I was still afraid of her.  
  
" How do you like the view?" a voice behind me asked. I turned to see Seto, standing in the doorway.  
  
" It's incredible!" Mai cried.  
  
" It's unbelievable!" Anzu added. I only smiled. Seto knew everything I had to say by only looking at me. I knew my smile would fool the others, but Seto saw things about me they missed. Like the way my eyes dragged at the corners, and the way my lips were almost always pursed tightly. The other guys streamed in and admired the view. Yugi had to stand on a chair, but he managed. Instead of joining them, I slunk back to Seto and leaned my head on his shoulder. He touched my hair softly and made an unintelligible sound that was somehow comforting. I smiled genuinely into his jacket.  
  
" It really is beautiful, isn't it?" I asked him.  
  
" Yeah. Beautiful." Seto mumbled back. I looked up at him to find his eyes glued to me. Embarrassed, he turned away to look out the window.  
  
" What makes you think we can find the boys here, in Egypt?" I asked. Seto shrugged, turning and walking out the door to the guys' room next to the girls'. I followed him. " Well?" I asked.  
  
" A hunch." Seto said finally. He winced, and I knew why. He expected me to get mad at him. I expected myself to get mad, but strangely, I didn't. I hopped over the guys' luggage and followed him into the room.  
  
" A hunch is better than what I've got. What gives you a hunch that they'll be here?" I said. Seto plopped lazily onto the bed and looked at me as I laid down next to him. He pulled me to him affectionately and laid my head on his lap. He stroked my hair like he used to when it was longer and we were younger as he considered his answer.  
  
" I used to have an enemy who was… connected to Egypt. He wasn't just my enemy, he was Yugi's too. He was this whole group's enemy." Seto mumbled finally. I knew from what Anzu had told me that Yugi was a world class gamer, recognized all over the world for his skills, particularly in Duel Monsters. Seto was famous for his gaming skills and prowess in Duel Monsters also, as well as for his company and business skill. So it hardly surprised me that the two of them shared a common enemy. I nodded to show I understood and let Seto continue stroking my hair silently until jet lag finally caught up with me. I soon dozed off, my head on Seto's lap, uncomfortably aware of Himeko in my subconscious, watching my every move and hearing every word said.  
  
*+*+*  
  
I had slept until I could sleep no more. I finally awoke and tried to peer through Yuki's eyes. I caught vague glimpses of the world she knew, of faces she cared for, but no more. I saw the most of the boy, the one named Seto. I saw his face scrunched up in worry for Yuki, afraid for her and afraid of what lived inside her. Afraid of me. He cared very deeply for Yuki, it was easy for me to see. He had unknowingly devoted his heart to her, given her his undying devotion. And neither one of them knew it. They hid behind the pretense of their friendship and shrank away from the truth. Soon enough it would hit Yuki that her "friendship" was developing into something more. Or maybe I was being too reminiscent, remembering my own love too much.  
  
It was hard for me not to dwell in the past, not to stay too long in days gone by. Things were foggy, and some things I couldn't remember at all, but what memories I had I treasured. I wanted to cry, but the funny thing about crying is that a soul can't weep like a normal person. I could only weep internally, and that made the pain all the harder to bear.  
  
I could feel Yuki's presence very distinctly. She spent a lot of time wondering at me, trying to figure me out. I wasn't sure if I wanted her to succeed. I felt her concern for me, her desire to talk to me so that I, in turn, might talk to her. But I also sensed her fear of me. She was afraid, and I hardly blamed her. She was handling the situation surprisingly well, much better than I imagined I would have handled it myself. But she was still afraid. She was scared of the power of my will and emotions. She wasn't sure if she could trust me. I cried again in my silent way. I somehow felt like I had failed her. Like it was her I needed to please, when I had always thought that she was here to please me, and her needs were second to mine. I couldn't connect this knowledge with some memory from my past to justify it, but I knew it was there. There was the nagging question floating around in my thoughts; wasn't Yuki just a catalyst, a carrier? A tool for me to use? Somehow, she had become more than a tool. Somehow, I had begun to care for her. Love makes a person weak, and I had to be strong. And yet, I was weak anyway with the realization of my death. Memories of my own death were vague. I could only remember rage and desperation as my body died and my still-conscious soul was trapped inside the darkness of the orb. The time in the darkness was sparkling clear. I had been so lonely. I spent what must have been at least a half a century in the real world crying out the names of the ones I had lost, desperate to find them. Finally, in desperation and loneliness, I used the power that had been granted to me by that loathsome contract on myself. A form of internal suicide. I sentenced myself to eternal sleep until light fell on me. It was a natural thing for me to do. I had spent my entire life around people. People I loved. I had never been alone for a second in my whole life. So in the solitude of the darkness, I went into a state of madness. I finally sealed myself away, until Yuki brought the light back to me.  
  
It was hard not to get attached to that girl. I wanted to care about her, but memories and lust for revenge were stronger than whatever humanity was left in me.  
  
*+*+*  
  
I don't know exactly when Yuki fell asleep with her head on my lap. All I knew was that I was frightened and exhausted. Jet lag was taking its toll on me, but I refused to close my eyes. I was afraid to even blink, for fear that the heavy weight on my eyelids wouldn't allow me to open them again. But I needed to stay awake and think.  
  
A hunch Yugi and I shared had brought us here, to a bleak and desolate place in Egypt that had once been a bustling place of the arts and business. We knew that if Pegasus was to ever emerge from the darkness Yugi had banished him too, it would be here. In Egypt. Where, according to Yugi, this whole thing started a millennia ago. Where, hopefully, we would find the answers we were looking for. I glanced down at Yuki. It was hard not to look at her the way the other guys were allowed to look at the other girls. For me, it was taboo to look at her like that, the way a man looks at a woman. Yuki was my best friend. I wanted to protect her, to stand beside her, and to always help her when she needed me. I did not want to be her lover. Did I? It was hard. She was so beautiful. Those deep, red-violet eyes, the shoulder length golden hair streaked with crimson, those long, slender legs, the curvaceous figure… I shook my head and stopped myself. Stupid hormones, I thought angrily. The last thing I needed was to be battling inner demons concerning Yuki.  
  
I tried to concentrate. Locating the main suspect, supposing it was him that had kidnapped the boys, would be a feat all in its own. Then there was the whole matter of getting to him. Pegasus had never been surprised in his life by anything, and chances were he wouldn't be now. What scared me most was that if he knew we were coming, there was a chance he might hurt the boys. I almost screamed in frustration. Finally, I scooted myself out from under Yuki and walked out onto the balcony the guys' room sported. Leaning on the rail, I felt the dry desert wind scrape against my face, trying to push those thoughts of Yuki out of my head. Again, I found it difficult. Instead, I turned my gaze onto the Nile and the Pyramids. Such a strange beauty that surrounded them, wrapped in an air of ancient mystery. They seemed so familiar to me. It seemed like once, a long time ago, they were part of my life as normal as a refrigerator was to me now. But that was impossible. I had been to Cairo a few times on business trips, but I had never seen the Pyramids or the Nile so close before. Just another part of the huge, tightly tangled mystery we were here to solve.  
  
Suddenly, the door behind me opened and Yugi walked out to join me. He jumped a little, grabbing the rail and supporting himself on his arms, his feet dangling freely.  
  
" Need a hand?" I asked.  
  
" Nope." The little guy responded simply. He indignantly swung his feet over the rail until he was sitting on it, his feet hanging off the other side. I had to hand it to him, he was definitely not a quitter. We sat in silence for a moment.  
  
" It's beautiful, isn't it? In a weird way." Yugi said finally.  
  
" Yes, it is." I answered. Again the silence. " How are we going to find him?" I asked suddenly. The question was on my mind, but the words popped out of nowhere. Yugi didn't look surprised by the question.  
  
" You want me to lie or tell the truth?" Yugi asked after considering his answer.  
  
" Tell the truth." I said quickly.  
  
" You're sure?" Yugi asked.  
  
" Yes." I responded patiently. Again, Yugi sat silently, contemplating his answer.  
  
" I haven't got the faintest clue." He said finally. I could have shoved him off the balcony, but I didn't.  
  
" Then, in a word, we're screwed." I said. Yugi winced at my crude choice of words.  
  
" Not entirely." He said. " If Pegasus wants us to find him, he'll make sure we do. And if it is Pegasus, you know he's out for revenge. Which means that we have bought ourselves a ticket into his lair."  
  
" Doesn't that sound oh so inviting." I mumbled sarcastically.  
  
" About as inviting as a Nile crocodile's grin." Yugi agreed.  
  
" Inviting enough to send chills right up your spine." I said, unable to resist smiling.  
  
" Come een to my lair." Yugi said, imitating a Dracula accent and smirking the whole time. I had to chuckle. Yugi always knew how to put the best face on a bad situation. I finally left Yugi on the balcony and returned to the room. Yuki still lay where I had left her, her arm stretched over her head and a serene look of contentment flooding her soft, caring features. I lowered my hand and touched her face, brushing away a silken lock of golden hair and grazing her soft, dark olive skin. She smiled softly in her sleep and shifted her weight ever so little.  
  
" Sleep now, Yuki." I mumbled to myself. I knew she couldn't hear me. " Sleep now so you can be strong later." I sighed. I was becoming far too close to Yuki for comfort.  
  
The pounding of a drum in the distance and the constant roar of the voices of the hundreds of people swarming all around caused an eternal noisy atmosphere in the bazaar we were currently fighting our way through. Merchants shouted at me to buy their fish, nuts, or whatever else they happened to be selling at the time. Several shouted at Seto and the other guys to "buy the lovely ladies some pretty jewelry." The guys simply ignored the remarks. One incident in particular nearly unglued the ladies present.  
  
" Excuse me!" a man called, jogging up and grabbing Seto's arm to get his attention. Seto glanced at him disdainfully, liking his looks as much as I did. Fortunately, the man seemed to speak English, if not very roughly.  
  
" Yes, how may I help you?" Seto responded politely, pulling his arm out of the man's grip.  
  
" I wondered if perhaps you sell me that girl there," the man said, pointing to me. " I willing to pay forty camels and fifty chickens."  
  
" Sell her?" Seto asked, clearly bewildered. I opened my mouth to speak, but Yugi's light touch on my arm stopped me.  
  
" Yes. She yours, yes? I see you leading her, I think she yours. Your sister? You are too young to marry, I think, but she the right age. She make a good mother for children, I think." The man said, looking me up and down. He grabbed my arm roughly and spun me around. " I can tell. She would be very good. I add ten chickens to my offer, as you might have troubles parting with such girl." The man continued. His touch sent shivers straight up my spine, and I could see Seto tense visibly.  
  
" She's not mine to sell." He said through gritted teeth.  
  
" I see. Then perhaps you tell me who I talk to? I like very much this girl." The man said, frowning.  
  
" No." Seto said firmly. " If she was for sale, I would be the one to talk to. But she's not, because she is her own person." He said, maybe too forcefully.  
  
" I understand." The man said, slightly disappointed. Then he looked at Anzu and Mai, who both stiffened.  
  
" Either one of them? The one on left a little too blonde, but one on right is good." He said.  
  
" No." both Yugi and Jounouchi said firmly. Jounouchi paused to clamp a hand over Mai's mouth to keep her from saying anything. After the man had left, Anzu nearly leapt down Yugi's throat and I was about to strangle Seto.  
  
" Who says you get to tell people I'm not for sale, like you own me or something?" Anzu growled, bristling.  
  
" Who died and gave you the right to talk like you own me but gave me my freedom?" I asked, trying to stay calm. Mai simply went about the process of wringing Jounouchi's neck.  
  
" In his mind, your father." Seto said calmly. Yugi held up his arms, signaling that he meant no harm.  
  
" It's their religion! In their culture, women are revered, but they can be bought and sold! We had to say something, because women aren't really allowed to say whether they can be bought or sold!" he cried. I backed off Seto, considered, then finally decided to let it go. I paused, however, to give Seto a dirty glare which he responded to with a smile. I caught Anzu staring at him, and she quickly looked away. It was hard for them to understand why Seto treated me like he did. I knew he gave me selective treatment. I also knew he spoiled me, and very thoroughly. But I also knew why. That was the only way Seto knew how to show his affection for me. No one had ever shown him any affection besides Mokuba, and he didn't know how to respond to me sometimes. He was different around me, not the cold, ruthless competitor the world knew. He was soft and caring, showing the side of himself that he considered a weakness. While he had he ability to condemn people to a fate worse than death without flinching, he was also capable of stroking my hair and cheek, holding me tight, and soothing all my troubles away. Those actions usually embarrassed him or shook him up, though, so he didn't absolutely lavish praise and affection on me. I was glad for that. If he had done that, I doubted my ability to resist the urge to start to like him as more than a friend. It was hard enough just as it was. Whenever we hugged, held hands, or were simply affectionate, I was always distinctly feeling his presence as a male and my own as a female. It was hard for me to hold onto the image I had always had of Seto, as a little boy who was over-protective and always open to new experiences.  
  
I stopped pondering and emerged back into the real world. Mai was pouncing Jounouchi to get him to buy her something, Anzu was listening with rapt attention as Yugi gladly shared with her some knowledge he had about some merchandise, Honda was admiring a few pieces of art, and Seto was standing on his tiptoes, craning his neck, and looking around, trying to get a bearing on his position. I walked up to Seto and gave him a gentle shove, causing him to reel a little.  
  
" Whatcha doing?" I asked innocently. Seto looked down at me and went back to trying to see over the crowd.  
  
" Trying to see if the map we have is right. I think it's a little out of date." He told me. I took the map from him and investigated it.  
  
" Well, let's see. I know we passed this shop just back there." I mumbled. I spun around to orient myself. " And there was a fountain around that corner… Hey, Seto?" I asked, glancing toward him.  
  
" What?" he asked me.  
  
" Is there a three way path down that way?" I asked.  
  
" Yes." Seto asked.  
  
" Then it's your map skills that are out of date. This map is fine." I said, smiling. Seto rocked back onto his heels and frowned at me.  
  
" I'm positive it was leading us around in circles." He said. I smiled and wrapped both my arms around his left one.  
  
" You've got the sense of direction equal to that of a cow." I told him.  
  
" A cow? But a cow doesn't have a sense of direction that I know of." He muttered.  
  
" My point exactly." I said.  
  
" That was not funny." Seto told me.  
  
" Anyway, it's not like we have a specific destination. And if you don't mind me saying so, it seems to me that I'm the only one with absolutely no clue what we're looking for anyway." I said, releasing Seto's arm and moving to the right to inspect a piece of jewelry.  
  
" Like you said, it's not like we have a specific destination, so I don't think anyone here as any idea what we're looking for. Just a hunch." He said, sneaking up behind me and tickling my sensitive sides. I squealed and shied away from him, but he only chased me. He finally gave up the chase after a few minutes, especially after I threatened to tickle him. A very not well known fact is that Seto is incredibly ticklish on his sides and under the arms.  
  
I could feel Himeko stirring deep inside me. I felt a few emotions radiate from her, but mostly I felt emptiness. She felt she had failed somehow. I tried to reach out to her, but she shrank away.  
  
Why won't you talk to me? I asked her in my head, but there was no response. Instead, feelings floated up from her, anger, regret, hatred, sadness, loneliness… She felt so lost. Once, a night that now seemed so incredibly long ago, she reached out to me and offered to help me, but now it was me who reached for her.  
  
I guess those men in suits had finally learned that I was a force to be reckoned with, because the hand that suddenly reached around my neck and covered my mouth and nose had a white, strange smelling cloth on it. The smell was overpowering, and suddenly I felt woozy and light-headed. The next thing I felt was the incredible urge to sleep, and I blacked out before I had a chance to make any noise at all.  
  
I was suddenly aware of Yuki's absence. Don't ask me how, I just was aware of it. Yami stirred forcefully within me, and before I knew it, he was wide awake and waiting for me to let him take control. I spun around, searching for Yuki. I found Kaiba wheeled around, glaring at a man in a black suit, who was holding an unconscious Yuki. I caught the glint of a knife in his hand.  
  
" You people has to come with us." The man holding Yuki said, glaring back at Seto.  
  
" Says who?" Jounouchi growled, brandishing his fist. The man wagged the knife reprimandingly.  
  
" The boss says. Besides, if you don't, this girl here gets it." The man said, dragging the knife dramatically across Yuki neck lightly to show us what "it" was.  
  
" Why you-" Kaiba growled, his body literally quivering with rage.  
  
" Calm down, Kaiba." I interrupted. " We'll go with you as long as we think you're not hurting her. If we see a single sign injury, I swear on my life that we'll kill you. Slowly." I threatened. The man wasn't taking me seriously, because of my height, no doubt. One look at Kaiba, Jounouchi, and Honda seemed to convince him I meant business. I was really just all talk. I doubted my ability to do anything that might endanger Yuki further, and I doubted anyone else's ability as well. Besides, Yami may be perfectly capable of killing someone, but I'm not, and I never will be.  
  
" This way." the man said, working his way through the bazaar, always sure to never totally turn his back on us. Amazingly, no one seemed concerned with a big man carrying an unconscious girl followed by a troop of angry looking young adults. People just went about their business.  
  
The man led us down into a shop. He whispered something to the shopkeeper, who nodded and went behind a curtain into another room. I took the opportunity to memorize our surroundings so that I could find it again. It seemed to be a curio/souvenir shop. There was a bust of an ancient pharaoh on a shelf, and a stone with ancient Egyptian carvings on it. Probably cheap copies, both of them. But they were land marks I could remember. I paid especially close attention to the stone, memorizing the hieroglyphics as best I could.  
  
" Come back here." The man holding Yuki, who Kaiba had refused to take his eyes off of, ordered. We followed him. Anzu and Mai shared a look of apprehension, Jounouchi, Honda, and Kaiba all had a look of anger and hatred etched over their features, and I must have looked strangely calm, given the situation. We followed the man behind the curtain the shopkeeper had gone behind. There was a small room behind the curtain, undecorated and utterly bare. On the far wall, a large slab of the stone wall had been removed to reveal a cave, with stair leading downward. I got a nasty feeling from the cave, and I really didn't want to go down there. Yami scoffed my apprehension and forced our legs onward. I'm sure I looked odd. My upper body was leaning back, but my legs were striding confidently forward. I muttered a few things to Yami about my thoughts on him at the moment in my head, to which he only laughed.  
  
I'm beginning to think I've finally had an influence on you. he thought at me in amusement. I ignored him and followed the man, leading the way down the stairs into the shadows.  
  
I distinctly felt evil. With every step I took, the urge to run away grew stronger. Even Yami was jumpy, and he liked the situation even less than I did. Only Kaiba seemed to lack fear. He had glued his gaze to the back off the man's head and was not moving it. I could just see the ruthless wheels in his head turning, imagining all the methods of torture he would inflect on the man and his boss. Kaiba had treated Yuki selectively from day one. When Yuki was around, he would smile, which all in itself was a miracle. He would laugh, he would seem happy. All the things I had never seen Kaiba do before. But Kaiba's relationship to Yuki was explainable. They had known each other for most of their lives. It was my relationship to Yuki, and, even more importantly, Yami's that were unexplainable. Yami never talked about his emotions, and he was very good at hiding them, even from me. He viewed my emotions as weaknesses, and often urged me to abandon them. I wouldn't, but I often wondered what went on inside Yami's private mind, and why he was so dead set on saving Yuki. Yami, as always, was following my train of thoughts.  
  
She reminds me of someone I knew a long time ago. he interrupted, annoyed.  
  
Who? Your girlfriend? I asked. I was totally serious, but Yami seemed to think that I was teasing him.  
  
No! he protested sharply.  
  
Then who? I asked again. There was a pause.  
  
Someone. Someone I cared about. Yami said finally, his tone telling me he'd rather drop the subject. I wanted to pursue it, but Yami jerked our left leg so that we stumbled. I took that as a threat and dropped the subject.  
  
After what seemed like hours of walking at a steep incline down the stairs, we finally reached the bottom. The man, who had Yuki slung over his shoulder, simply dropped her. Kaiba growled and ran up to her.  
  
" Huh?" Yuki mumbled groggily. " Wha? Oh, crap!" she cried, jumping to her feet. Kaiba continued to glare at the offender.  
  
" You has to stay here." The man told us.  
  
" Like Hell we're staying here." Kaiba informed him immediately. Jounouchi showed his agreement by cracking his knuckles. The man shrugged.  
  
" Those is the orders from the boss." He said.  
  
" When do we get to see your boss?" I asked. I didn't like this dark room, and I really didn't like the bad feeling I was getting.  
  
" When he's good and ready." The man said, turning and walking out a door. The door slammed resolutely, and I could hear the lock clicking into place. Anzu let out a muffled cry as the single bulb over head went out, leaving us in complete darkness. There were muffled sounds of shuffling and movement as we all crawled and crept about, searching for each other in the darkness.  
  
" Seto, is that you?" Yuki's voice asked, tinted with fear.  
  
" Mai, where are you?" Jounouchi called.  
  
" I'm here!" Mai called back.  
  
" Who's touching me?" Anzu cried suddenly.  
  
" I think that's me." I said, trying to remain calm. Anzu's hand gripped mine. There was a thunk to our left.  
  
" Ow! I think I just found a wall with my head." Honda told us. There was a little laughter.  
  
" Jounouchi, that had better be you." Mai suddenly threatened.  
  
" Well, judging by the whiff of perfume I just got, it's you that's next to me." Jounouchi responded.  
  
" Ah! Who's that?" Yuki cried.  
  
" It's me! Don't yell in my ear!" Kaiba yelled back.  
  
" Don't yell in mine, then!" Yuki cried at him. There was more laughter at their exchange.  
  
We finally managed to gather together towards the middle of the room. It wasn't the most comfortable thing in the world, but we were warm and felt at least a little safer, all huddled together, back to back. That's not to say our little confrontations didn't end.  
  
" Who just touched my butt?" Mai asked suddenly. Everything went silent for a few moments, until we all burst out into laughter. " I'm serious! Who touched my butt?" Mai repeated.  
  
" Someone is sitting on my foot." Honda confessed a little bit later.  
  
" So that's that hard thing under me!" Yuki cried triumphantly. There was more laughter.  
  
After what seemed like hours of story-telling, singing songs, Jounouchi and Honda's bad jokes, and more touching than most of us thought we could bear, something began to happen. I first became aware of it when Yami suddenly forced his way up to consciousness, next to me. The only way I can describe the sensation is this; a very large something shoving its way next to you behind your eyes. It's never failed to give me a headache. I could feel a headache starting up as Yami directed my attention to a small pinprick of light.  
  
I want an aspirin. I muttered in my head, squinting into the light.  
  
" Hey, look!" I said out loud. After everyone had discovered the light, which had started growing, Yami began to freak on me. I felt an overpowering rush of fear not my own.  
  
No! I don't want to go! Yami cried. I got the feeling that he would have been climbing the walls if he had control of our body.  
  
Go where? I asked.  
  
Back! I don't want to go back! They can't make me! Don't make me go! Yami begged me in fear.  
  
What? I wondered. If it was making Yami, who was utterly fearless, act like this, then it must be bad. Just then, the light flashed, and for a confusing moment, all I knew was the white hot light, the sensation of drifting, and Yami's cries to "not go back." 


	4. All The Reasons Why

Yuki  
  
By: Rogue Fox  
  
Part Four… All The Reasons Why  
  
  
  
I knew what that light was. And by Ra, I did not want to have anything to do with it. I had lived it once, and that was plenty, thank you. I felt my little friend, Yugi, tense at my apprehension. He knew me, sometimes too well for comfort. I was frightened and he knew it. He knew that my fear was more than enough reason for him to be afraid as well. But suddenly, I was back. Back to where it all started. Back to the faces, the people I had loved once. So long ago. Somehow, I knew it wasn't real, and I knew that it was only a matter of time before I emerged to the present. But when I saw them… my family… the people I loved… it all went out the window. I didn't care. I just wanted to hold them…  
  
*+*+*  
  
A child giggled somewhere in the darkness. A voice I recognized somehow. It made me think of my brothers, but not quite. It was like a little girl was giggling. Then, a little boy laughed as well. Suddenly, I was standing in a hallway made of stone. There were markings on the wall, pictures and funny letters like the ones you see in a National Geographic issue when they're showing you the inside of an Egyptian pyramid or something like that. I saw a man walking with his back to me down the hallway. Sunlight flitted in through holes in the left wall, shining on the man. He was bare-chested, wearing a white skirt, yes a skirt, that went down to his knees and he was bald. He was holding the hands of two small children, one on either side of him.  
  
" The Pharaoh has two children who were born on the same day," a voice whispered in my ear, I turned to see a man who did not appear to see me. He was tall and, unlike the other man, very pale. He also wore a white skirt and no shirt. His hair was shockingly white. He was speaking to a shadowy man I could not make out, who seemed to be wearing some sort of Greek toga. " Legend has it," the white haired man continued. " That when a Pharaoh has two children, born from the same mother on the same day, that a great thing will happen to the empire. Whether it is good or bad depends on the stars and the children." I marveled at the white haired man, waved my hands in front of his face, but he didn't see me.  
  
" Father, you're the best!" a little girl's voice cried. I turned to the man and his children. The man turned with the kids to see the white-haired man.  
  
" Nepano, don't talk our guest's ears off." He said with a laugh. I gasped when I saw his eyes. His eyes were red-violet, just like mine. The man walked toward Nepano and the guest. " Good sir, these are my children. This is Ammon, my son," he said, pulling a little boy out from behind him. My eyes bulged and I gasped again. The very image of a younger Yugi poked his head out from behind his father and regarded the stranger suspiciously. His hair was black and crimson, with gold bangs that couldn't seem to decide whether or not to stand up or lay down. He was up to his father's thigh and had a playful glint in his eye. " And this is Ammon's sister, Isis." The man continued, gesturing toward a little girl almost identical to Ammon. She was slightly taller than Ammon, her eyes the same red-violet, her hair golden with crimson and black bangs that seemed to lay down more than Ammon's. Ammon wore a smaller replica of his father's outfit, while Isis wore a white dress down to her knees.  
  
" Unless I am mistaken, you named your daughter for your Egyptian goddess?" the stranger asked.  
  
" I did. I thought that the daughter of a Pharaoh and sister of a future Pharaoh should have a suitable name for her position. And so I named her Isis. I named Ammon so because even before his birth, he managed to hide his existence, thus earning a name that means 'hidden.'" The man said. The little girl, Isis, pulled at her father's hand.  
  
" Father, can we go play with Eshe and Nen?" she asked. The Pharaoh patted his children on their heads.  
  
" Go on, go play." He said. The children cheered and took off. I suddenly felt odd, like I was losing my hold on this place, as I watched the little girl who looked so much like me run off…  
  
*+*+*  
  
The hallway with the Pharaoh vanished, and suddenly I was in a different hallway. This one had columns on both sides and sunlight flitted in from both sides. I was suddenly aware that Yami, who had been giving me such a headache before, had gone utterly silent.  
  
What's the matter with you? I asked him.  
  
I remember… was the only response I got. My attention was suddenly diverted by a young boy, no older than ten, running down the hallway. It was Ammon, from earlier. He had gotten older. Apparently a large amount of time had lapsed from then to now, only a few seconds to me. Suddenly, Ammon was tackled from behind.  
  
" Isis! Get off!" Ammon cried, shoving his twin off. Isis giggled.  
  
" Gotcha, brother." She said triumphantly.  
  
" Better you than Nuru or Tenok. They weigh much more than you, not that I'm saying you're light." Ammon cracked. With age, he looked so much more like me, with a few exceptions. Over all, he was the exact mirror image of Yami, if not younger.  
  
" Hey, you two took off in a hurry. What's the rush?" another boy, who had followed the pair down the hall, asked. He was slightly taller than Isis, and his dark brown hair was left hanging from his head, not pulled back like other young men I had seen in this odd, dream-like state. He had startlingly piercing blue eyes. He looked like a boy I had seen in a picture Mokuba had shown me once. The thing was, the boy in the picture was Seto Kaiba, at the age of ten. The only difference lay in the clothes, which were standard Egyptian on this boy,  
  
" Sorry, Nen." Isis apologized. " We were wondering if maybe Father wanted to play." Footsteps sounded down the hall.  
  
" Hey! Why'd you guys run off like that?! You left me and Eshe and Tenok all of the sudden!" a boy with blonde hair, also hanging free from his head, called. He reminded me of Jounouchi, younger, but still Jounouchi. And I'll be danged if the girl following him wasn't a young version of Mai and the other boy wasn't Honda.  
  
" Isis! I thought we were going to go pick desert blooms today." The girl who looked like Mai said. Isis slapped her forehead.  
  
" Oh, sorry, Eshe. I forgot. Father mentioned that he and Nepano were going to the market today and-" Isis began, but Eshe interrupted her.  
  
" The market? Well, we can pick blooms any old time, the market is far more important!" she cried, her face brightening so much like Mai's when someone tells her there a mall within walking distance.  
  
" Do you think he'll let us come?" the blonde boy, who looked like Jounouchi, asked.  
  
" That's what we're going to find out." Ammon said. The scene suddenly changed to a busy market place. The Pharaoh was walking next to the white- haired man that reminded me, in a very chilling way, of Pegasus.  
  
" Tenok! Be careful!" the Pharaoh called as the boy who looked like Honda dodged out of the way of a speeding camel.  
  
" Yes sir!" came his dutiful response. I followed along behind. No one seemed to see me or even notice me if I touched them. I gathered from the talk amongst the kids that the blonde boy was called Nuru. Quite suddenly, the children gathered in a small corner. The Pharaoh, smiling, and Nepano went over to see what had grabbed their attention. It was a little girl, with her brown hair cut in a ragged line above her shoulders. She narrowed her blue eyes and tried to look menacing. She looked exactly like Anzu when we were younger and she was trying to look mean. Nen grabbed Isis and Eshe by the shoulders and pulled them back a little, a small protective gesture that only made him look more like Kaiba.  
  
" Hello. What's your name?" Ammon asked, cautiously sticking out his hand.  
  
" Brother!" Isis snapped. Ammon paid her no attention. The girl attacked his hand, biting and clawing at it.  
  
" Ammon!" the Pharaoh ordered, but Ammon only winced. The girl fell back from his hand, which was now a bloody mess. Ammon stood up straight and fished in a small pack around his waist, pulling out a hunk of bread.  
  
" You must be hungry. Here you go." He said, handing her the bread. The girl looked him up and down, seemed to decide he was a friend, and snatched the bread. After she had gobbled it up, she grinned and literally tackled Ammon.  
  
" Thank you! My name is Mariah, what's yours?" she asked.  
  
" Um, Ammon." Ammon said. Mariah giggled.  
  
" That's good! You're my best friend now!" she cried.  
  
" Looks like Ammon made a new friend." Tenok cracked. Isis laughed at her brother's blush and pulled out of Nen's grip.  
  
" My name's Isis!" she cried. The other kids were quick to introduce themselves, and the Pharaoh and Nepano only chuckled…  
  
*+*+*  
  
I had been calling for Yugi for some time now, even as I watched the scenes unfolding around me. I could still remember his comforting grasp on my hand before that bright flash of light, and now I longed for it again. The scene had changed. I was standing in a large room. On one end, there was a huge door guarded by sentinels. On the other, there was a great chair that was made of some sort of stone, and on the chair sat one of those Egyptian crown things I had seen in the movies, and those funny little staff things the pharaohs carried. Next the chair with the stuff in it was a woman. She was tall and wore head adornments on her straight black hair, and a delicate white dress that dragged on the ground around her. I recognized Nepano, the white-haired man that looked like Pegasus, standing on the other side of the chair. Both seemed to be crying, the woman more so than Nepano. There was also a bunch of people, all formally dressed. Some were crying silently while others were openly weeping. Suddenly, the huge door slammed open and I saw the children. Isis was chasing Ammon, and the pair was followed closely by their playmates. They stopped short when they saw the people and sensed the somber, gloomy mood.  
  
" Oops. I think we walked in on one of Father's meetings." Ammon said, glancing around curiously.  
  
" Let's go." Nen said, pulling on Isis's arm. He looked so much like Kaiba, with that worried look.  
  
" No." Isis said quietly, pulling away from Nen. " Where's Father?" she asked. Ammon looked around sharply.  
  
" Maybe he's playing hide-and-go-seek!" Mariah, my own little look alike, cried hopefully. This spawned a quick search on the kids' part. The adults simply stood by and let them search the room. Finally, Isis lost her temper. She ran up to Nepano and planted her feet firmly in front of him.  
  
" Nepano, where's Father?" she commanded. Her tone said that she was in no mood for games anymore. Nepano looked away. " Nepano, I command you, as Princess of Egypt, to tell me where my father is." She said.  
  
" He's not here." Nepano said, evasively.  
  
" Then where is he?" Ammon asked, his voice low and threatening, sounding so much like Yami's. " And why are his staffs and crown here?"  
  
" He… he has gone away. And he's never coming back." Nepano said after a few minutes of silence. Everything and everyone froze in their places.  
  
" N…No. You're lying. It's a game. Father's just playing a game." Ammon said. He looked to Isis, who had a look of terror frozen on her face. " It's a game, sister. Just a game." Ammon told her, as though he were trying to convince himself more than her.  
  
" It's not a game, brother. Look at his face. He's telling the truth." Isis said. There was another dead silence as Ammon looked at Nepano's face. " It's those damn Greeks! They kidnapped him, right? Well, we'll pay whatever ransom they want-" Isis cried, her voice quaking, only to be interrupted.  
  
" It's not the Greeks. The Pharaoh was killed in an accident involving the Shadow Games." Nepano said sharply. Then, his face and voice softened. " I'm sorry." Suddenly, the woman in the white dress swept towards the twins and embraced them. They stood stock-still and stiff in her grasp.  
  
" My children, I'm so sorry." She cried. Ammon and Isis looked at each other, then pulled out of her grasp.  
  
" If… if Father is dead, then that means that I…" Ammon started, unable to finish his sentence. A cry erupted from the children and Mariah flung herself at Ammon.  
  
" No! Don't, Ammon! Please!" she wailed, wrapping her arms around his neck. Ammon looked at her gently and then removed her arms and pushed her away, as gently as he could. Isis stood by and let a few stray tears slip down her cheeks.  
  
" I have to. Our people need me now." Ammon said shortly. He walked up to the chair, which I now figured was a throne, and stood there expectantly. Finally, after a few minutes, he cleared his throat, glared at Nepano, and tilted his head towards the crown and staffs. Nepano sighed, as though he had wanted to avoid what was coming, and slowly walked toward Ammon. Isis suddenly turned like she intended to run, but couldn't seem to move her legs. Nen came to her and hugged her tightly.  
  
" Ammon! Please don't!" Mariah cried, weeping softly.  
  
" I don't have a choice." Ammon said as Nepano placed the crown on his head and handed him the staffs. A few golden bangs escaped the crown and framed Ammon's young face. He can't be any older than eleven, I realized sadly. He stared sadly at the ground while his sister walked toward him, dragging Nen, who refused to let go of her, along. The other kids followed them up the short flight of stairs to stand by their friends.  
  
" It's a truly sad day in Egypt," Nepano said softly. " When a new Pharaoh has tears in his eyes as he is crowned." I looked at Ammon and cried out for Yugi again. I was scared and lonely, as much as the young version of me was, staring at Ammon with a mix of adoration and fear in her eyes…  
  
*+*+*  
  
Yet again, years seem to pass in seconds before my eyes. I saw Ammon, the image of my rivals, Yugi and Yami, leaning on a stone wall. He was much older, at least sixteen now, and it showed in his physique, though slightly short. The wall incased a balcony that had a gorgeous view of the Nile. The crown I had seen placed on his head was sitting on the wall next to the staff, discarded carelessly. His gaze was intense as he stared out at the Nile, almost as though he were searching the throngs of people for someone in particular. There was a slam as the door of the throne room he had been crowned in was flung open. Nen, my image from so long ago, raced into the room.  
  
" They're back!" he cried. Ammon's face brightened immensely.  
  
" How long till they're here?" he asked.  
  
" Half an hour. The people are eager to greet them, too, so their escort is taking a little longer than expected." Nen responded. He came up to stand by Ammon and look out over the land.  
  
" It's been a long time. Almost a year." Ammon said. Nen nodded and I was reminded of when Yugi and I had stood together on the balcony over looking almost that exact scene.  
  
" They've probably changed a lot." Nen said.  
  
" We've changed a lot. Isis probably won't even recognize you, you've grown so much." Ammon said, laughing slightly.  
  
" Oh, and she'll recognize you, then?" Nen said, quirking an eyebrow.  
  
" Of course she will. I'm her brother, and we shared our mother's womb. No one knows me better than her." Ammon replied confidently. The two stared out at the scenery for a moment.  
  
" Are you going to tell Mariah?" Nen asked finally. Ammon sighed.  
  
" I'm going to try. That's all I can do. What about you?" he said.  
  
" I also intend to try. It's hard, though. Like you said, I doubt she'll even recognize me." Nen said, smiling ruefully.  
  
" Brother!" a female voice shouted suddenly.  
  
" Well, here's your first chance." Ammon said, turning around. I recognized the girl running at him as Isis, the girl who looked so much like my own Yuki. She grabbed him around the neck and treated him to a hug.  
  
" Looks like I'm still taller." Isis announced happily. Ammon frowned, holding Isis at arm's length.  
  
" I'll catch up to you, I swear it. What in the world are you wearing?" he asked in a tone that said I don't like that, so change now.  
  
" Don't you even start on the protective big brother thing already." Isis growled back. She was stunning, wearing a white skirt that dipped pretty low in the front, revealing a slender waist, and small white shirt that would be classified as a tube-top by today's standards. It brought out her natural colors beautifully.  
  
" I think you look nice." Nen interjected. Isis paused, her eyes lighting up as she flung herself into Nen's arms.  
  
" Nen! Oh, you've grown! You're so tall, I didn't recognize you at first!" she cried into his chest. Nen hugged her back tightly.  
  
" I've missed you too." He said sarcastically.  
  
" Oh, of course I've missed you! I've missed you all so much!"  
  
" Where's Mariah and Eshe?" Ammon asked.  
  
" AMMON!" a feminine bellow echoed across the room. Suddenly, Ammon was no longer standing. He was on the ground. Mariah had tackled him, hard.  
  
" Um, Mariah, please don't squeeze me so hard. It hurts." Ammon said, after initial greetings and hugs.  
  
" Sorry!" Mariah cried, immediately releasing him and allowing him to stand. At which point Eshe walked in calmly, accompanied by Nuru and trailed by Tenok. I was strongly reminded of Mai walking with Jounouchi, and Honda trailing for the fun of it. Greetings and hugs were exchanged.  
  
" Well, how did it go? Should I tell the army to ready themselves?" Ammon asked. Isis sighed in exasperation.  
  
" I swear, brother, we tried every trick under the sun, and some you only find under the moon. Those damned people would not be moved a bit." She said.  
  
" What about the gifts we sent?" Tenok asked.  
  
" They liked them, and they were impressed mostly by the cats. But still, they wouldn't hear of it." Mariah said, still attached to Ammon.  
  
" Well, that just stinks like a Nile rat." Nuru said bluntly. Nen grimaced.  
  
" Thank you for that elegant assessment, Nuru." He said. The scene suddenly began to fade, and I could distinctly make out laughter. I wished suddenly that I knew where Yuki was. I was scared, for myself, but also for her. She had to be seeing the girl, Isis, who looked so much like her but couldn't be her. I knew who it was. It had to be Himeko, the other girl in Yuki's head. It had to be. And suddenly, it was all so clear to me. And I got even more terrified with the realization. Himeko was the spirit of a dead girl… Yami was the spirit of a dead guy… that had to mean that Isis and Ammon, who I had no doubt were the past forms of those two, were going to die.  
  
Suddenly, I was standing in a narrow corridor. Isis was walking down it, alone. She was humming a tune I vaguely recognized. It was a melody Yuki used to sing when we were very young. She had told me her grandmother had taught it to her. Isis was still wearing her outfit that her brother disliked, and she was so much like Yuki that I knew she was probably wearing it just to spite her brother. She strode confidently down the hall, and finally stopped at a door and flung it open. She walked in confidently, removing the hair ornament that adorned her head and tossing it aside. There was a raspy breath from a dark corner of the room, which I guessed was Isis's chamber, that the firelight didn't reach. Isis spun around, her face twisting into a snarl of hatred, contempt, and surprise.  
  
" Anubis." She said shortly. The Egyptian god stepped from the shadows and bowed stiffly. Isis did not return the gesture. " Sent by your master, Ra, no doubt." She continued.  
  
" The great Ra has indeed sent me, Princess of the greatest empire in the world. He has an offer, one he does not think you capable of refusing." Anubis said. Isis snorted.  
  
" Let's hear it, then. We'll see how capable of refusing I am." She said, completely unimpressed.  
  
" Ra wishes that you eradicate the Shadow Games. You and your brother." Anubis said. Isis laughed in his face.  
  
" Oh, come on! You expect me to believe that pile of worthless manure? My brother outlawed the Shadow Games and visits to the Shadow Realm almost immediately after you gods allowed our father to die. Whatever happened to the gods supporting Pharaohs, anyway? You sure left Father alone when he could have used your help." Isis said, her amused voice becoming more serious as she mentioned her father.  
  
" We are not allowed to interfere with the Shadow Games. They are beyond our power. And as for their eradication, you only think they're gone. The Games are like certain incenses. You become addicted to them, until you need them to survive. Many have continued their practice behind your back. I can give you the power to destroy them forever." Anubis said. Isis's head jerked to him, almost angrily.  
  
" The power to destroy the Shadow Games?" she snapped.  
  
" Yes. You and your brother." Anubis said.  
  
" We'll do it." Isis said immediately.  
  
" You must not be so hasty. There are conditions. You must swear on your father's honor that you will follow this through, even if it kills you and all you love. And you cannot use the power to kill without reason. The person must condemn himself. You can make him disobey rules, break his word, however you like, but you can never kill without cause. If you wish this power, have your brother make you High Priestess of Egypt. Then, the night of your recognition as just that, come to the Temple of Ra and accept your powers. I must leave." The god murmured, and was suddenly gone. A cool breeze swept through Isis's chambers, lifting silky drapes. She stared after Anubis, or more appropriately, at the spot where he had stood. Her expression told of her hatred, how she blamed the gods and the Shadow Games for all her suffering, and, for a brief second, fear and doubt about the decision she had made, but that was gone before she could pursue that train of thought.  
  
The next few scenes were a blur to me. I saw Isis grabbing her brother by his shoulder and dragging him out of a meeting with some important looking people. I saw Ammon yelling at Isis, and Isis yelling back. I saw Nen, Mariah, and Ammon, all shaking their heads, and Isis, Eshe, and Nuru trying to convince them of something. Finally, Tenok said something, and apparently, the decision was made. The next thing I saw was Isis and Ammon, standing before Ammon's throne while people applauded. Nen was standing near Isis, looking totally enraged. Finally, the speed slowed as I saw the group walking into a big, important looking room. There were statues everywhere, and a few torches burning while the group walked in. Isis walked up to the altar, wearing a new head ornament and that outfit that annoyed Ammon so much. She said something in a low husky voice I couldn't understand and the scene changed yet again. Now, Nen was standing alone. He was angry, in a room decorated with writing on the walls and beautiful works of art. I guessed he was in his own chambers. The door opened suddenly, and Isis entered.  
  
" Nen? Are you in here?" she called, sounding almost afraid.  
  
" I'm here." Nen said curtly. Isis walked up behind him and put a hand on his shoulder. He jerked away from her. Isis let her head hang.  
  
" Nen, why do you hate me?" she asked. Nen sighed almost inaudibly.  
  
" I don't hate you." He growled.  
  
" Then why do you avoid me, why won't you let me touch you? Why do you hate me?" Isis wailed.  
  
" I don't hate you!" Nen suddenly cried. Isis stood back, shocked by the force of his outburst. " I hate what you've become! You've become a monster, Isis! You're totally consumed by your anger and hate, and it's going to kill you, I know it!" Nen continued. He wheeled around to face Isis. " Isis, I… You mean everything to me. I can't stand seeing you like this. If you die, then I die as well. I've felt this way about you as long as I can remember. I… I love you." He said, dropping his gaze to the floor.  
  
" Nen, I had no idea." Isis murmured after a moment.  
  
" That's why I hate this plan of yours so much!" Nen cried. " I can't stand the thought of losing you." He whispered. Isis approached him, slowly, seeming afraid that he might push her away. Slowly, she wrapped her arms around him and leaned against him.  
  
" I won't die, Nen. I promise you. After this is over, after we've done what we're going to do tonight, you and I… we can put this behind us and live together in happiness. The two of us." She whispered. Nen wrapped his arms around her and hugged her tightly.  
  
" I won't let anything happen to you." He promised. I had a bad feeling about this…  
  
*+*+*  
  
The scene was changing again. Now it had become a different room. In it, Mariah was quietly sitting while Ammon, across the room, glared at the far wall.  
  
" I don't like this." Ammon said finally. Mariah sighed.  
  
" I don't either." She agreed. She paused, then spoke again. " Ammon?" she tried tentatively.  
  
" Yes?" Ammon responded distantly.  
  
" Can I tell you something?" she asked softly. Ammon looked at her, a gentle softness creeping over his hard features. I was struck by how much he looked like Yami once again, but there was something else there, a little bit of someone else… Me? Was there a little bit of me in Ammon?  
  
" Of course you can." He said gently. Mariah stood suddenly and walked to him. She knelt in front of him.  
  
" Ammon, when you and your friends found me in the market place, I was a starving orphan with no hopes, no dreams, no future. I was a little rat on the streets that could barely speak. But when you handed me that bread, even though I had attacked you, you gave me far more than a full stomach. You gave me something beautiful. I was too young to understand it then, and I promised myself that someday I would repay you for everything you did for me, taking me into your home, your heart, and your family. As I grew up, I realized that you were so much more than a friend to me… You were my savior. You had pulled me from certain death and given me a chance at life. And I…" Mariah broke off, her courage faltering. I wanted to reach out and touch her, she looked so much like my own precious Anzu, but I didn't dare. Ammon reached up and touched her face.  
  
" Don't say anything. I know." He said. Mariah laughed quietly, even though there were tears in her eyes.  
  
" What if you die tonight, Ammon? You know it's perfectly possible, what with all the risks we're taking." Mariah asked.  
  
" I promise I won't die." Ammon said solemnly.  
  
" How can you promise me that?" Mariah asked, looking at him with disbelief.  
  
" I can because I know I won't die." Ammon said. Mariah rolled her eyes.  
  
" You always were arrogant, but this is ridiculous. I think you're putting way too much confidence in the powers Ra gave you." She said. Ammon smiled and gently caressed her cheek.  
  
" After this is all over, Egypt will still be here. And her people need a queen. The last one was a let down, and I was hoping maybe you could fill the job…" Ammon said, letting his voice trail off. Mariah threw her arms around his neck and murmured her acceptance.  
  
The room they were in faded suddenly. The group was back in the temple with all the statues, which I had earlier assumed was the Temple of Ra. I was with them, and carrying a heavy sense of foreboding in my heart that Yami was not easing.  
  
I don't want to see it again… he moaned. I ignored him and concentrated Isis. She looked so much like Yuki, with only small differences. She was wearing the outfit that annoyed Ammon and carrying a long staff that was intricately decorated with Egyptian markings. I noticed Nepano, holding a torch and standing behind the group. Nen didn't look very happy, but Nepano put him to shame with the glare he was giving Isis. I got a really bad feeling from him. He was planning something, something bad. Isis suddenly climbed up the stairs to the altar. Ammon followed her a few steps, but Nepano rushed up and dragged him back.  
  
" This is her duty. She must do this alone." He growled. Ammon snarled at Nepano and jerked his arm out of the older man's grasp.  
  
" I know!" he snapped. Isis tapped the wall behind the altar three times, and murmured something in a language I couldn't understand. The wall vanished into blackness. One of the other girls let out a startled shriek.  
  
" This is the way. If we want to do this, we go in and destroy the Shadow Games from the inside out." Isis said, turning and facing her friends. Ammon walked up to stand beside her. " We won't think any less of you if you turn back." Isis added.  
  
" This is your last chance, and we'd actually prefer it if you did turn back." Ammon said.  
  
" Quit the theatrics. We've been friends for most of our lives, and we're most certainly not going to abandon you now when you need us most." Nuru said, smiling. I noticed how he held Eshe's hand. He reminded me of Jounouchi, telling me that he'd always be my friend. It didn't help that he looked so much like Jou. " I'm not saying we're not scared out of our minds, and that some of us aren't too happy with this plan, but that's too bad. We're here and we're not leaving." I grinned as Ammon smirked at Nuru.  
  
" Okay, enough friendship speeches. Let's go." Isis said, whirling around and diving head first into the blackness. Her friends, who came in pairs and trios, followed her. Finally, Nepano was left. He glanced around. I didn't like the look on his face. Finally, the older white-haired man, with a look so startlingly like Pegasus when he had a devious plan it gave me chills, stepped into the black portal.  
  
The group stood in darkness. There was no fading of scenery, the change was sudden and abrupt. Suddenly, Yami started yelling like a madman in my head.  
  
Not here! Anywhere but here! I don't want to see it again! He cried. I could feel my headache returning and ignored him, concentrating on the group before me. I noticed Nepano was missing.  
  
" Well…" Mariah said slowly. Isis chuckled and raised her staff.  
  
" I summon the Shadow Games!" she called. Her voice had an odd echo to it. Such power echoed off of it. Nepano suddenly appeared in front of Isis, his arms crossed. Isis cocked an eyebrow at him and looked really annoyed. " I called the Shadow Games. Exactly what are you doing here?"  
  
" Come, come, Isis. You're such a bright, pretty girl. You always suspected, didn't you? You just didn't think it was possible that I could have done it." Nepano said. There was a very pregnant pause as Isis's eyes grew wide. Ammon was the first to respond. He sounded so like Yami, I did a double take at him to make sure it wasn't Yami I was seeing.  
  
" Tell me you're not saying what I think you are." He said, his voice silky and calm like Yami's when he was so mad he couldn't even see straight. I could see Isis balling her fists at her sides.  
  
" Traitor." She spat suddenly. " You're right. I did suspect you. I just didn't think you would kill your Pharaoh and your best friend. You're not even worthy of the title of traitor. You did kill him, didn't you? It wasn't an accident. Father was playing a harmless game with you, and it got out of hand. Father paid the ultimate price for your addiction, didn't he?" Nepano was silent for a long moment. I felt angry, I felt Yami's anger, but I saw Ammon's anger. His eyes were filled with sadness, anger, and hate. But the truth of the situation he had led his sister, love, and friends into was dawning on him. He knew that he had tumbled right into a trap. And somehow, he seemed to lock eyes with me. I still don't know to this day whether or not he truly saw me, or whether, if he did see me, I was in my own body or Yami's. His eyes told me that he knew. He knew it was over.  
  
" We were fools. This is a trap, isn't it? We're not supposed to leave this place alive, are we?" he asked, his eyes still locked on mine. I felt my tears begin in my eyes. I felt his pain as though it were mine. He broke the spell to look at Isis. He wanted so badly to protect her, her and Mariah and all the others. But he had lost the game this time. He had lost before the game had even begun.  
  
" It's amazing. People say gods and pharaohs are so powerful, but it's amazing how a single man like me can maneuver both those powerful creatures just where he wants them and get rid of them all-" Nepano paused to snap his fingers. " Just like that." He paused again and pointed to Isis and Ammon. " You two were always in my way. The throne would have been mine. No one expected your idiot mother to survive her pregnancy. Everyone, all the best healers, even your own father thought that she, the delicate little thing that she was, would die and take you children with her. But she survived somehow, and gave the Pharaoh two healthy heirs in the process. I tried to kill you in your cribs, tried to have you kidnapped, everything I could think of, but the gods were with you. So I killed your father. He was an idealistic man, and he realized my true motives too late. Now, I have come for you. For you, Ammon, who wouldn't even cut your hair when you were crowned, for you, Isis, who was always too inquisitive and intelligent and lucky for your own good, and all the rest that you've dragged into this. Well, my luck is about to change." Nepano paused and smiled, then twisted his expression to one of sorrow. " Such a terrible accident that took the lives of the young Pharaoh, his sister, and his dear friends. Such promising youths they were, too. I had great expectations of all of them. I shall miss them terribly." Nepano laughed, ruining his act.  
  
" You are one sick man." Nuru said quietly.  
  
" If you think we'll just lay down and die, you're very mistaken." Nen said threateningly. Suddenly, a ball of dark energy surged and Nepano. The white- haired Pegasus look-alike barely dodged it. My eyes flashed to Isis and Ammon. Isis had balled her fists together in front of her and was charging another attack. Ammon glared at Nepano and smirked characteristically.  
  
" You waited to long, Nepano. You waited too long. You see, we've learned how to fight back. That was your mistake." He said calmly.  
  
" Dark Eternity!" Isis shouted, releasing her dark energy at Nepano, who threw up his hands and managed to deflect the ball to the surrounding darkness. White-hot light flashed as the twins engaged in a battle against their father's friend. Nepano was obviously more experienced, but youth has its advantages. Finally, a sharp energy wave caught Isis in the side. She fell and Nepano pressed his attack. Ammon was kept at bay by another wave of energy. Then, just as Nepano was about to deliver the killing blow, grinning maniacally, something leapt in the way. I saw too late that it was Nen. Isis screamed. Then the massacre began. Her power overflowed, unchecked and unhindered. Ammon tried to contain her, then fell to protecting those of his friends that had survived the battle this long, but his energy would not last much longer. Nepano countered the powerful flow of emotional energy from Isis with a blow of his own, but the attack was lost among the flow. Isis finally managed to control herself, but the white- hot light stayed for a few minutes. When I was finally able to focus my eyes, Isis was slouched over Nen's crumpled body. I could tell from as far away as I was that Nen was not breathing. Only a few feet away from me lay Eshe, her long blonde hair fanned out behind her head as a trickle of blood was drying on her mouth. A ways to my left was Tenok, laying with his head at an odd angle. I could tell his neck had been broken. They looked so much like my own friends, I immediately began to cry. I tried to wipe my eyes. I wondered who had killed them. Isis, in her uncontrollable despair or Nepano, in his mad rage? I doubted anyone would ever know. Mariah and Nuru had managed to stay alive, although Mariah wasn't standing and didn't appear as though she would ever be able to again. Isis lifted her head from Nen's chest and reached to close his eyes.  
  
" Sleep, my love. For I won't be long behind you." She whispered as she closed his wide eyes, closed them for eternity.  
  
" Eshe!" Nuru cried wildly. He turned to Ammon, who was looking Mariah over, his face expressionless. " Tell me she's not dead!" he demanded. Ammon refused to look him in the eye.  
  
" Then I can't tell you anything, because anything else would be a lie." He whispered. Nuru stared at him for a long time, then ran at Nepano.  
  
" I hate you! You took away two of my best friends and the only woman I'll ever love! I hate you, and I don't care if you kill me too!" he screamed. I turned away, unable to watch the young man that looked so much like Jou die. When I did turn back, he lay crumpled before Nepano, who was bloody and panting. Mariah sobbed and Isis stood up, still staring at Nen. Suddenly, Mariah fell silent. I turned back to Ammon and Mariah. Ammon had his hand stretched out and pressed to her chest. Mariah's eyes slowly closed.  
  
" Forgive me, Mariah. You would have never walked out of here alive anyway. I only wish to end your pain." Ammon said. His voice sounded hollow. He gently lay Mariah down and stood, walking over to join Isis.  
  
" You have succeeded in taking away everything we loved. Our father, our friends, our beloved's. We will never forgive you." Isis said. Her voice rolled from her lips so smoothly and quietly, yet it dripped with anger and hatred. The Shadow Realm suddenly vanished, and the scene I was watching slowly began to fade, until all that was left was Yami's moans…  
  
*+*+*  
  
I cried silently as I watched Isis walk just as silently into a large room. There was a raised stone platform in the middle of the room and Isis approached it. On the platform lay Nen. He was totally dressed up in Egyptian finery, and I had no doubt that poor Isis had not spared her lost lover any expenses. His features were still fresh and lively. He looked so much like Seto.  
  
I loved him so much… Himeko muttered in my head. It felt like someone had ripped my heart into tiny pieces, to see him laying dead before me. she whispered. Her words confirmed my sad suspicions. This was her past, this was the pain and rage and terror that drove her. Isis suddenly sank to her knees and laid her head on Nen's chest. She sobbed for a moment.  
  
" Nen… We could have been happy, you and I. We could have been husband and wife… I promise I won't let your death be in vain. I promise, Nen, I will make your killer pay dearly for what he's done to us. Even if it costs me my life." She murmured. A door opened from somewhere behind Isis and Ammon stepped into view. " I trust you've been in mourning." Isis muttered, not taking her eyes off Nen's still and lifeless form.  
  
" Yes." Ammon said simply. " She doesn't look dead." He suddenly added. Isis lifted her weary gaze to meet his. " She looks like she's only sleeping. I keep thinking to myself, 'It won't be long now before they wake up and smile and ask me how I slept.' But I have to keep reminding myself that they're not going to wake up."  
  
" Did you make sure that Nuru and Eshe are buried together?" Isis asked, ignoring Ammon's statements.  
  
" Yes. They were going to get married, you know." Ammon said. I sensed that he had been maddened by the deaths of his friends. " Those two were good together. It's not fair."  
  
" Shut up, Ammon. You speak like a madman." Isis said, her voice threatening.  
  
" I had to kill her. You know that, right? I had to kill Mariah myself. Her spine had been crushed at about the middle of her back. She would live what was left of her life in agony. I couldn't bear to see her like that, so I killed her myself. What does that make me, sister? Am I as bad as Nepano? Am I a murderer?" Ammon asked, looking at Isis with tears in his eyes and a mad smirk on his face.  
  
" You don't realize what you're saying, brother." Isis cried, grabbing Ammon by the shoulders. " The grief in your heart has maddened your mind-"  
  
" Oh, I'm not mad, if that's what's worrying you. I just don't know what else to do. I did kill her, though." Ammon said, perfectly calm.  
  
" You couldn't have killed her. You told me that you loved her-" Isis protested.  
  
" Of course I loved her. How could I not? It was my love for her that drove me to kill her. I loved her too much to see her in that agony, so I ended it for her and took all the pain upon myself. Now I feel every tear as sharply as she felt every blow against her poor, broken body." Ammon said, tears running down his face and over his smirking lips. " I'm a killer, aren't I, sister?"  
  
" No!" Isis screamed. " You aren't! You gave her the rest and peace she deserved. I'm sure she's grateful to you." She told him.  
  
" They're waiting for us." Ammon said, nodding to Nen.  
  
" They're waiting for us to join them in the after life. We won't live, will we, brother?" Isis asked suddenly.  
  
" No. We'll give everything we have to destroy Nepano, and then we'll go to them. I can hear them calling us now." Ammon said. There was a pause as Isis listened. I listened as well.  
  
" What if we can't destroy him?" Isis asked.  
  
" You know the answer to that." Ammon said.  
  
" We'll leave a catalyst." Isis answered herself. " We should cast the spell then." The scene suddenly went fuzzy, and faded away. The next clear thing I saw was back in the dark place they called the Shadow Realm. Isis and Ammon both gripped something small in their hands, facing Nepano head to head.  
  
" You two fools. You left catalysts for you to use incase I should ever emerge again." Nepano said, frowning. " No matter. I hate to disappoint you, but there will be no great battle here today. I've already sealed your fate. You are cursed. Your bodies will shrivel and die while your soul is slowly sucked from you and incased in those little symbols you carry. The battle you seek will happen, but not this day."  
  
I watched in horror as Isis began to die before my eyes. She wilted before me, reaching for her brother, but her arms had grown to heavy to lift. Something cloudy was ripped from her body and stuffed into a small golden orb by invisible hands.  
  
" The joke's on you, Nepano! You think we came unguarded? I cast a reflect spell! You are effected by your own curse!" Isis cried, even though her body had obviously died. Nepano promptly began the process of dying.  
  
" See you at the dawn of new age, Nepano!" Ammon cried. And then I knew how my companion in my head had met her end.  
  
That's how it happened? I asked.  
  
Yes. You are the catalyst I created. Himeko muttered. I felt consciousness drifting from me. I vaguely saw the room I had been in before the light had flashed and men in black suits advancing. I tried to lift my arms in defense, but my body wouldn't respond. I tried to look for Seto, but my eyes closed of their own accord. Just before I drifted away, I heard a laugh that was too familiar for comfort…  
  
  
  
AN: Hey all. First of all, I want to thank you for all the reviews. Even though certain people can sure be rude. Thank you for the advice. I realize that this part may be a little confusing, so here's something that will help a little. Any other questions, please e-mail me right away at A5whale@aol.com.  
  
Ammon = Past version of Yami and Yugi  
  
Isis = Past version of Himeko and Yuki  
  
Nen = Seto Kaiba  
  
Nuru = Jounouchi  
  
Eshe = Mai  
  
Tenok = Honda  
  
Mariah = Anzu  
  
Nepano = Pegasus 


	5. Face to Face

Yuki  
  
By: Rogue Fox  
  
Part Five. Face to Face  
  
A/N: Okay, hi everybody! I regret to inform you that some of you might find the next two chapters a little boring. I promise things will heat up! I need these parts to get the story rolling. Just bear with me! Thank you for all your wonderful reviews and support!  
  
I felt my eyes roll around under my closed eyelids as I struggled into semi- consciousness. With a start, my eyes flashed open and I tried to sit up. My efforts were rewarded by a hard knock on the head as I lost my balance and fell back to the floor I had sleeping on. I paused there, trying to remember something, anything that would help me figure out why I was not back home in the room Seto had given me. I remembered a bright flash of light, Isis, her death. and then it all came rushing back. Painful memories of figments from the past. I cast about mentally for Himeko, but she wasn't awake. I opened my eyes again and stared at the marble floor. Marble? The room I remembered was dark, and had a dirt floor. How had I gotten here? I vaguely remembered someone coming for me, right before I blacked out. Had that someone taken me here? Where was Seto, and Yugi, and the others? Where were the boys? My mind was racing in panic as I slowly sat up.  
  
" Well, the sleeping beauty wakes." A pompous voice said. I blinked stupidly and searched for the source. " And none to gracefully." The voice added with a laugh. I blinked again to clear my vision and looked around. Sitting at a table with an elegant glass of wine was a man, in a suit with white hair. I blinked yet again, to make sure I wasn't seeing things. Nepano? I wondered. Yes, it was Nepano. Or at least, the very image of him.  
  
" Wh.where am I? Who are you?" I asked. The man swirled his wine and smiled. I didn't like his smile. It reminded me of a crocodile who knows his dinner is walked right into his mouth.  
  
" Oh, I am known by many names. Perhaps your friends will be able to tell you who I am. As for your location, you are on the floor of my dining room." The man told me. I cocked an eyebrow at the man. I definitely did not like him. He had a sneaky look about him, and I didn't like it. I also didn't like his evasive, tricky answers. Instead of wasting my breath on him, I turned to see Seto laying there behind me. I immediately scrambled to him on my hands and knees. I shook his shoulders. He groaned and tried to roll over, then realized he wasn't in his bed. He sat up suddenly and looked around, surprised and obviously trying to decide how to react.  
  
" Wah?" he asked stupidly.  
  
" Really bright, boy." The man laughed at him. Seto looked around, focusing his eyes in the direction of the voice. I crawled closer to him, seeking the comfort, warmth, and familiarity of his arms. I sensed his immediate tension as he tightened every muscle in his body. I looked at his face, searching for an answer in his familiar features. His lips were twisted in a snarl and his piercing eyes were narrowed dangerously. I knew that look. It was a look of true anger and hatred.  
  
" I suppose I was a fool to assume that the world was finally rid of its lowest scum." Seto said finally. The white-haired man laughed.  
  
" Come now, boy, you haven't introduced me to the lovely lady. Although if I know you, you've already staked your claim, haven't you?" he said. Seto's face colored, and I wondered why.  
  
" You keep Yuki out of this. Whatever you want, you leave my family out of it. Agreed?" Seto barked.  
  
" Actually, Kaiba, this concerns her more than it does you. Your friends are finally rousing themselves." The man informed us. I scooted away from Seto to help Anzu sit up and check on the rest. Yugi had a trickle of blood flowing from a cut on his forehead, Anzu's lip was swollen, and Honda was developing a large bump on the back of his head. Seto reported a bruised rib and I was noticing a bad headache developing, and the fact that I had a bloody nose. Everyone else appeared to be fine.  
  
" It appears my servants were anything but careful when they carried you here. I will have a first aid kit brought so you may clean your wounds." The man said dismissively. The others noticed him for the first time. I decided that he wasn't the type of person they really liked from the startled yelp that escaped Mai's lips and Jounouchi suddenly leaping to his feet.  
  
" What the hell are you doing here?" Jounouchi asked loudly. Yugi remained frozen in his spot, his eyes narrowed and calculating. The noise had roused Himeko, and she began to make a fuss that only worsened my headache. Something suddenly occurred to me through the haze of pain and confusion in my head.  
  
" Did you kidnap my brothers?" I asked suddenly. Everything fell silent as the white-haired man swirled his wine and smiled.  
  
" They look startlingly like you, you know. The same gold hair, same shape of the face. Brave too, especially the older one. Yoshi, I believe his name is. You would be proud of him. And young Kaiba, a good lad. Put up a brave fight when he realized where he was. But all in vain." The man said. I didn't recognize the low, threatening growl that came from my throat. How dare this monster speak of my brothers, who he kidnapped, like they were animals to be bought and sold? Seto caught my arm and held me back. " And you look so much like a girl I once knew. She was a brave girl, but she died a painful death in the end. You'll be glad to know that she fought hard for all her silly ideals and ethics to her bitter end." Now it was no longer me that growled. It was Himeko, from somewhere deep within me.  
  
He's a monster. she told me. I agreed silently, but would not give him the pleasure of actually speaking.  
  
" Alright, we're here, Pegasus. What do you want? Or maybe you'd rather I just sent you right back to the pit you crawled from, quick and simple." Yugi said, interrupting before Seto could say anything for me.  
  
" Come on, little Yugi, you and I both know why you're here. I daresay that Miss Yuki has a suspicion as well. We have a score to settle." The man, Pegasus said. I felt Himeko pushing within me to take control, but I held her back. The flicker in Yugi's eyes told me he was fighting a similar battle.  
  
" Let our friends go, and I'll be glad to let the one who truly deserves to fight do as he must." Yugi said quietly.  
  
" Oh, but they deserve to be here. Am I not mistaken that the one you know too well took his own love's life because of me? I'm sure your friend there," Pegasus paused to nod to Anzu. " Would like to see your bigger self fight to avenge her death." Everything was coming together. Himeko's will was surging now, but I battled her down.  
  
You've grown so strong so quickly. Himeko thought in shock.  
  
" Let my brothers go, let my friends go, and I will not kill you." I said suddenly. I didn't recognize my own voice. Seto apparently didn't either, because he looked at me suddenly, to check and see if I was still in control of my body. I was.  
  
" You? You, sweet, naïve, gentle, motherly Yuki, kill me? You may think me the villain here, but I'm not an idiot. Now, possibly Isis. I wouldn't doubt her ability to murder me in cold blood for a moment, but not you." Pegasus told me. That was when I first noticed the power. Power, coursing through my veins. I immediately turned my attention to Himeko.  
  
I'm not doing anything. Himeko assured me. This is all you.  
  
" I may be motherly, but the thing about motherly is this; you're willing to do whatever it takes to defend what you love. I love my brothers, I love my friends. And I will kill to protect them. Don't underestimate me." I informed him. My voice was silky and smooth, but it was low and threatening. I felt the changes begin, and I had started them myself. Himeko took control. She opened our eyes and looked at Pegasus.  
  
" You speak of me as though I am no longer here." She said, smirking. I laughed in my head. I sensed the changes Yugi underwent as his own older self took control.  
  
" The dream team is reunited." Pegasus said. " The King of Games and the Queen of Luck."  
  
" You're just jealous." Himeko told Pegasus.  
  
" You honestly think you stand a chance against me? I beat you once, and I will do it again." Pegasus said.  
  
" We're not so young anymore." Yugi said, but it wasn't Yugi. I didn't know the name he used for his older self, so he was still, in a sense, Yugi.  
  
" No. But are you willing to risk your catalysts and their loved ones?" Pegasus asked, grinning. " I am willing to risk mine. He's a pathetic man, and he's been broken for a long time. That's your mistake. You made your catalysts too much like you. Now you've actually grown fond of them. You see, if the body you live in now dies, you just go right back into your prison and await the rebirth of your catalyst. For the catalyst, it means actual death. Are you willing to risk their lives for your pride?" Himeko faltered.  
  
This is my fight too. I reminded her. She instantly understood.  
  
" Yuki is ready to face the consequences. She understands what's at stake and requests the removal of all her friends and proof that her brothers are safe and far enough away." Himeko said outloud.  
  
" Yugi agrees." Himeko's brother stated.  
  
" What?" Seto broke in. " Yuki wouldn't say that." He protested, grabbing our arm. Himeko gave me control of our throat and mouth.  
  
" I just did, Seto. Please leave. This is my fight, and I will fight it." I said. Seto recognized my voice. " Please don't interfere. This is for me."  
  
" You actually expect me to stand by and let you risk your life." Seto said incredulously. I simply looked at him, and he looked back.  
  
" If you don't mind my interrupting, I have an offer to make." Pegasus said suddenly.  
  
" And who says you get to make offers?" Yugi asked coldly.  
  
" I do." Pegasus said tolerantly. Then he directed his attention to Himeko and I. " You always were a beautiful girl. If either one of you, Yuki or Isis, comes over to me, I'll let the little boys go and send your friends right home." He said. Himeko recoiled physically, then pause to sense my reaction.  
  
I don't believe it. You're actually considering it! She cried mentally.  
  
I already said I'll do whatever it takes. If this is it, well. I said. I tried to gain control of our mouth, but Himeko held me back.  
  
I refuse! I won't let you! she cried.  
  
This is my life, my body! I snapped. Give it back now!  
  
What would your Seto say? Himeko snarled.  
  
That doesn't matter! I protested.  
  
But it does, doesn't it? It does matter to you. she said, almost amused.  
  
Seto knows he can't stop me from doing anything I want to. And you'd think that you'd have learned by now too. I growled.  
  
How about I ask him? Himeko asked cockily.  
  
Don't you dare! I cried, slamming our mouth shut.  
  
Then you have to promise you won't take that monster up on his offer! Himeko shouted in our head, struggling against my will.  
  
Fine! I didn't even want to anyway! I cried, backing away from the bodily controls.  
  
" Absolutely not." Himeko said out loud.  
  
" I'm not letting anyone take me anywhere." Seto said stolidly.  
  
" Yuki wants me to tell you to go before she makes you." Himeko said with a sigh.  
  
" She won't make me do anything." Seto said coolly.  
  
" Just letting you know, she's losing her temper." Himeko said. " And I'm getting sick of playing messenger." She added.  
  
" We're all getting pretty annoyed." Jounouchi said crossly. " Can't you two keep your domestic disputes where they belong?"  
  
" Apparently not." Himeko said, laughing shortly.  
  
" Can we get to business?" Pegasus asked, clearly annoyed.  
  
Traitor. I told Himeko. She just laughed.  
  
" Sure. Why not? It's not like we're going anywhere." Mai said, making herself comfortable on the floor. Jounouchi shrugged and sat down beside her. Yugi and Himeko stayed standing, Seto with us. Anzu yawned and Honda stretched his legs out in front of him.  
  
" Since the ladies refused my previous offer, I have another." Pegasus began.  
  
This sounds like it'll be long-winded. I thought to Himeko, who chuckled.  
  
" It's a simple request. I'm sure you've wondered, Miss Yuki, what has caused this change, this other person to live inside you." Himeko seemed to sense that Pegasus had struck a nerve in me. " I'll tell you, it's your little necklace there. You were born from a spell, a wish made by your other personality. She created you in her image, gave you the qualities about herself she liked best and some all your own. Little Yugi is the same. You are merely tools, reflections, copies of the real thing." Yugi flinched visibly at the words. I wondered what went on between the two Yugis in their shared head. " Those necklaces you have there are the last pieces to a great puzzle, and I need them to complete the puzzle. I want them."  
  
" Suppose we don't want to give them to you?" Yugi asked coolly, smirking.  
  
" Consider this. In return, I am willing to grant you what you desire most." Pegasus said. I noticed a strange feeling in our head, as though a third person was there, watching. " Whatever you want. Just imagine. I can give you a reality where there is no suffering, no terror." His words seeped into my skull, swirling around.  
  
Yuki! Don't listen! Himeko cried mentally.  
  
" What's going on?" Seto asked, probably reacting to the alarmed look on our face.  
  
" Yuki listening to him. He's pulling some sort of mind spell on her." Himeko explained. I was unaware of any of this. All I could see was Mom and Dad and my brothers, smiling at me.  
  
" Come home, sweetheart." Mom called, holding out her hands to me. I wanted to go home. How much I wanted it! All I had to do was touch her hand and all my pain would just go away.  
  
*+*+*  
  
I watched Yuki's face for a reaction to what Pegasus had said. Or maybe it wasn't Yuki, maybe it was Himeko. In any case, Himeko appeared to be trying to talk to Yuki.  
  
" Argh! It's not working. She's totally focused on one image." Himeko cried angrily.  
  
" That's it, Yuki. Touch her hand. Touch it. You want to come home so badly, you poor girl. And you should. You deserve it." Pegasus said, smiling patronizingly at Yuki.  
  
" What's the image?" Yami asked quickly. There was no doubt Yami controlled the body he shared with Yugi now. The features were too cold and calculating to be Yugi's.  
  
" I can't quite tell. She doesn't want me to see." Himeko said, closing her eyes and straining.  
  
" Come home, Yuki. I can give you your deepest desire. I can make all the problems just go away. Isn't that what you want?" Pegasus intoned smoothly. Again, he was ignored by all except Yuki.  
  
" It's her family." I said suddenly. " She's seeing her mother and father and brothers. She wants to go home." I said, the truth paining me terribly. I had taken her away from what she loved. I had been trying to save her, but had I, in the process, condemned her to eternal suffering? Was that why she was falling into Pegasus's trap? Did she want to escape? So badly that she'd even give in to Pegasus?  
  
" That would make sense. Her brothers are the entire reason she's here." Honda said thoughtfully.  
  
" Touch her hand, Yuki." Pegasus encouraged.  
  
" Shut up, will you?!" Anzu yelled back at him.  
  
" Don't touch her hand, Yuki!" I cried. I had no idea what I was talking about, but I figured anything Pegasus told her to do at this point was bad.  
  
" She's hesitating. She hears you! Keep talking, I'm trying to put her to sleep." Himeko told me.  
  
" Don't listen to him, Yuki. Touch your mother's hand." Pegasus said, annoyance seeping into his voice.  
  
" Yuki, it's me. It's Seto." I said, suddenly faltering. What should I say? Should I tell her that I. No, that's stupid. " Yuki, whatever Pegasus is promising is a lie. All he can give you is illusions. His 'reality' is only one big lie. Do you really want to live a lie?" I asked. Himeko's features seemed to soften a little.  
  
" I want." Yuki's voice! I almost jumped for joy. Then Himeko returned.  
  
" She's falling back. Don't stop." She told me.  
  
" Your real home is here, Yuki. With me, and Yoshi and Yukio and Mokuba, and all your friends." I told her. " This is where you belong."  
  
" You've got her total attention. Keep talking." Himeko told me distantly.  
  
" I don't know what else to tell you, Yuki." I confessed honestly.  
  
" Yuki, you idiot girl! You could have whatever you want!" Pegasus cried.  
  
" Give it up. Kaiba has her attention, and his promises are much better than yours because they're real. He can give her a true home, a place that's real with real people that really love her. You're as much of a phony as you ever were." Yami told Pegasus.  
  
" So shut up already! I'm sick of listening to you." Mai added. Just then, Himeko's legs seemed to go out from under her. I caught her, but although my arms reached for Yuki, I know it was Himeko I caught, Himeko that gripped my arms for support, and Himeko that murmured her thanks. Suddenly, I wanted to see Yuki in her own body. I wanted to see her smile. I suddenly remembered when she had fallen asleep on my lap in the hotel. I longed for her to see me the way I had caught myself seeing her. I wanted to hear her voice, calling my name.  
  
" Sorry. I think I used a little more than I thought I did trying to stop Yuki." Himeko muttered, supporting most of her weight on me. Yami patted her on the shoulder, telltale brotherly affection shining through years of cold isolation.  
  
" You did what you had to do." He told her. Himeko frowned.  
  
" She's angry now. She wants to know why she shouldn't have what Pegasus offered." She told us.  
  
" Because that's just giving him what he wants." Anzu said crossly. That was when I noticed the men in suits advancing on us. Jounouchi noticed them too.  
  
" Uh-oh." He said, glancing around. " We're surrounded!"  
  
" Can you walk?" I asked Himeko.  
  
" Forget walking! We're gonna need to run!" Mai cried.  
  
" Walk, maybe. Run, no." Himeko said. " I blew most everything I had on saving Yuki's ungrateful butt, and yes, Yuki, I did just say that." I didn't waste any time, turning around and forcing Himeko on my back, piggyback style.  
  
" Absolutely no remarks on this." I muttered through gritted teeth. The body that Yuki and Himeko shared was heavier than it looked.  
  
" Wouldn't dream of it." Yami said, his smirk telling that he had every intention of not listening to a word I said.  
  
" Um, now would be a good time for a brilliant plan." Honda said.  
  
" Yeah. Any volunteers?" Jounouchi asked.  
  
" Sure. Let's all grow wings and just fly away. While we're at it, we might want to pick up some magic fairy dust because I'm all out!" Anzu cracked.  
  
" You transform into a comedian under pressure, don't you?" I asked.  
  
" Can we please concentrate on the problem at hand?" Mai asked, gesturing wildly to the men, who had gotten closer as we spoke.  
  
" Sure, it's not like I've got anything better to do." Himeko said. " Choice A, just sit here like dead weight. Choice B, listen to Yuki scream and yell like a kid having a tantrum. Choice C, figure a way out of this mess. I choose C." Himeko paused. " You know, those weapons on the wall can be put to more decorative use." She said after a moment.  
  
" I like the way you think." Jounouchi said, turning and contemplating the decorative swords and shields.  
  
" And Mr. Lazy over there," Himeko said, looking pointedly at Yami. " Can actually lift his hand and use some of his energy."  
  
" I was waiting for the right moment." Yami protested angrily.  
  
" Sure." Himeko said sarcastically, still perched on my back. " You always did like letting everyone else do the actual fighting for you."  
  
" I have no idea what you're talking about." Yami said seriously, turning and glaring at a man who had gotten too close for comfort. "If you value your life, you'll just turn around and walk away." He told the guy. Th guy ignored him. Yami sighed and lifted his hand, every finger outstretched. The air around him seemed to billow and waver and the guy stopped in his tracks, then fell to the ground. " I've still got it." Yami told Himeko.  
  
" Just be glad I don't have enough energy to give this room a nice zap." She told him. At that exact moment, Jounouchi leapt past two thugs and yanked a pair of crisscrossing swords off the wall.  
  
" I don't have the tiniest idea what I'm doing, but that's okay." Jounouchi told us. The guys around him paused.  
  
" Hey, share the wealth!" Honda called. Jounouchi yanked a few more swords off the wall and brought them back. Anzu, Honda, and Mai all took one. I was too busy carrying Himeko and Yuki, and Yami could defend himself just fine.  
  
" Yuki's throwing a royal fit. She wants you to know that she's not going anywhere without her brothers." Himeko said suddenly.  
  
" Sometimes it's better to run away and fight another day." I said.  
  
" She doesn't want to hear it." Himeko told me.  
  
" Too bad. I'm carrying you two right out of here." I said. " And no white- haired freak is gonna stop me!" I added loudly. Pegasus smirked.  
  
" That's very funny, Kaiba. So funny my servants and I forgot to laugh. You know, it's not very smart to insult someone who holds your life in his hands. He might 'accidentally' drop it." Pegasus said. " Enough play. Time to get serious." He told his "servants." They looked more like goons or bodyguards to me. They took his cue and each pulled out a gun.  
  
" It would appear that I've made a miscalculation." Himeko said, biting her lip. Jounouchi dropped his sword, and the others reluctantly followed his lead. Yami was forced to hold very still as his hands were tied behind him. The distant look on his face told me Yugi was not very happy with the situation and was letting Yami know about it. Suddenly, Himeko was trying to slide off my back. I tightened my grip on her bare legs and held her.  
  
" Let me go, Seto." She whispered in my ear. Wait, I thought, that's Yuki!  
  
" Yuki?" I asked incredulously, craning my neck to see her. She smiled softly.  
  
" Put me down." She told me. I obliged. She was able to stand easily. It seemed that Yuki was running off of energy independent of Himeko, who was drained.  
  
I don't know exactly what happened next. All I knew was panic as I flailed about in the blinding light, searching for something solid, anything at all. I found someone's hand, and opened my right eye ever so slightly to see who. The light was blinding, so I immediately closed my eyes again. I had caught a glimpse of red-violet eyes, but that could have been any one of four people, in two bodies. Something hit me in the gut and I lost my grip on the someone I had been holding onto. I vaguely hoped that it wasn't Yugi or Yami. That would be too embarrassing.  
  
I knew when the light faded by the sudden dimness behind my eyelids. I rolled to my feet from the position I had fallen into and opened my eyes. For a second, I was blinded, then my eyes adjusted, a little painfully. No one looked happy. Yuki was laying on the ground beside me, unconscious, Jounouchi had fallen on top of Anzu, who was yelling at him to get off, and Honda was sitting on the ground, looking around in confusion. Every guy in a suit had fallen to the ground and was laying unnaturally still. Pegasus was yelling angrily for more of the goons.  
  
" Run!" Yami, still in control of Yugi's body, barked at us. We were more than happy to obey. I swooped Yuki up into my arms.  
  
" Wah?" Honda asked.  
  
" Just run!" Anzu yelled, yanking her friend to his feet. I turned a complete circle looking for an exit. I found the door after turning nearly entirely around.  
  
" This way!" I cried, taking off for the door. I glanced behind me to make sure they were following me. Sure enough, they were.  
  
" Stop them!" Pegasus bellowed. I gripped Yuki to my chest and ran, almost blind to anything but terror.  
  
*+*+*  
  
Yami was exhausted. He had blown a lot, apparently, protecting the others from Yuki's explosion. Himeko was strong enough to control Yuki's body, but she was running on virtually empty. I had loaned a lot of my own energy to Yami to help, so I was no fresh daisy myself. Yami was sleeping deeply in my subconscious, and I was left to contemplate what had happened.  
  
" She just blew." Himeko had explained, looking pained, exhausted, and unhappy. " She just rose up, took control, and blew. She unleashed an explosion that was powerful enough to kill all those men, and probably most of you as well."  
  
" Fortunately, Yami managed to protect us." I broke in.  
  
" Remind me to thank him." Anzu had told me.  
  
" If Yami was protecting us, and the blast killed the goons, then what about Pegasus?" Kaiba asked.  
  
" He's strong enough to defend himself. Yuki's still too young to know that she would have to concentrate the energy to make a truly effective blast. The reason your Yami's spent is because he was protecting so many people who were all spread out. Pegasus was looking out for number one only, so he had to use much less energy. A combo of Yuki's inexperience and his selfishness made it easy." Himeko had finished up. Now, I pondered the entire incident, resting comfortably in a chair while Yami napped, and Kaiba watched Yuki sleep nearby. Anzu walked by, tiptoeing. I watched her. She moved gracefully, like the dancer she wanted to be. I felt her hand graze my arm and looked up. She smiled softly.  
  
" You okay?" she whispered. I nodded.  
  
" Just tired." I told her softly. She cocked her head thoughtfully.  
  
" You want to go outside and talk, or would that wake Yami up?" she asked.  
  
" You could blow a foghorn in my ear and he wouldn't ever know. Might bust my eardrums though." I said, making her laugh softly. I've always loved her laughter, like water falling over smooth rocks. I stood and followed her out onto the balcony. Only when I stood did I realize how tired I really was, fatigue washing over me like a tidal wave and turning my legs to lead. Somehow, I managed to follow Anzu out to the balcony and lean against the metal bars that supported the rail. Anzu sat down cross-legged next to me. I suspected she did that so that she could talk to me eye to eye. I would have just as soon had her stand up and talk to me.  
  
" This is some deep crap, isn't it?" Anzu asked finally.  
  
" That's one way of putting it." I said.  
  
" What do you make of all the stuff we saw, Yugi?" she asked, turning and studying me. I could feel her watching me as I paused, feeling Yami stir a little, and then sighed.  
  
" The same thing you do, I think." I said, turning and looking her in the eye. She looked away after a moment and I felt a terrible sadness welling up in me.  
  
" Then it really is Yami's past." She said slowly. And you really do still love him better than me, I thought ruefully, suddenly angry at Yami, who was totally oblivious to anything. Why did I have to compete with an ancient, braver, taller, stronger version of myself?  
  
" Yeah, I guess. In a way, it's mine too." I told her.  
  
" What about Mariah?" Anzu asked slowly. I know Anzu, and she had obviously been dying to ask.  
  
" There's no way I can be sure right now, but I think." I let my voice trail off. Should I tell her?  
  
" Think what?" Anzu pressed. I sighed again.  
  
" Think that you are her reincarnation." I finished. Anzu stared at the ground as she thought about that.  
  
" Yami really loved her, didn't he? He loved her too much to see her suffer." She said finally.  
  
" He loved her enough to kill her, so she wouldn't suffer anymore." I said. What was I doing, helping Yami win Anzu?  
  
" You never would guess, by just looking at him." Anzu said thoughtfully. I was tempted to ask her exactly how much looking she had done, but something held me back.  
  
" You like him, don't you?" I said suddenly. I didn't mean to say it, it just sort of popped out of my mouth. It startled Anzu, because she looked at me sharply.  
  
" What makes you say that?" she asked. I returned her gaze.  
  
" I know you." I answered simply. Anzu didn't say anything for a long time.  
  
" Does he know?" she asked finally, sullen.  
  
" No." I lied. Yes, he knew. He knew all about her crush on him. It was hard for him not to know, when my tortured thoughts about it were all too easy to read. He had always promised me that he had no romantic interest in Anzu whatsoever, but now I wasn't so sure. Was he just saying that for my benefit?  
  
" I'm sorry, Yugi." She said after a moment of companionable silence. Now it was my turn to look at her sharply. Did she know the way I felt about her?  
  
" Sorry for what?" I asked.  
  
" Dumping that on you. It's just another thing I know you'll worry about. You worry too much as it is." She replied. I almost sighed with relief.  
  
" If I don't worry, who will?" I asked. Anzu laughed, and I fell in love all over again. My heart felt like it had come too close to breaking into a thousand little pieces. Anzu was utterly oblivious to the way I felt about her, and she liked Yami! Why did it have to be Yami?  
  
" Are you okay? You look upset." Anzu said. I forced a laugh.  
  
" I'm fine. Just fine." I said with a forced smile. Then, I stood up and walked away. I felt Anzu watching me, but she didn't call me back.  
  
What's going on? Yami thought drowsily.  
  
Nothing. I told him.  
  
What's wrong with you? Yami asked me suspiciously, a little more awake.  
  
Nothing. I repeated. Everything's peachy. Perfectly peachy. Go back to sleep. I told him. Yami considered pressing me, but then decided against it and drifted back to sleep, leaving me alone with the turmoil of my heart.  
  
*+*+*  
  
I felt like I was drowning. Like I was struggling to stay afloat in a twisting, churning sea with waves five feet high that kept crashing over my head and pushing me down. I kept crying for help, but no one answered. I kept fighting to keep my head above water, fighting for my survival, but the waves kept pushing me down. And I was so exhausted. I just wanted to stop kicking and sink into the beautiful blackness. I kicked my feet again. I was determined to live, but I was so tired. I kicked futilely as another wave bore down on me. Pushed me down, further and further. A bubble of air escaped my mouth. I tried to swim, but I couldn't move. Another bubble of precious air escaped my lips. I felt my life slipping away.  
  
*+*+*  
  
I felt Yuki's distress before she herself realized it. Panic swept over me as I reached for her soul, but she had sunken too far inside herself for me to reach but just feeling for her. I opened our eyes suddenly, searching about for something, anything familiar. I found the boy, Kaiba. He seemed to have been dozing, but now his eyes were trained on me.  
  
" She's drifting. I think we're losing her." I muttered, diving back into the turmoil and fear that was Yuki.  
  
" What?!" I faintly heard Kaiba ask frantically, but I didn't answer. Yuki had created a very realistic image of a churning sea in her soul. She was somewhere among the towering wave, drowning in her own exhaustion. I wasn't thinking about how if she died, I would go back to the darkness, or how there wouldn't be a chance of getting revenge without her. I only thought of saving the girl who had come to my defense when I was too weak to fight. My only thought was of saving the girl I had created after myself. I plunged blindly into the waves, searching, casting about in the murky darkness for her soul. Fatigue crept over me, but I ignored it. I pushed my head above the water.  
  
" Yuki!" I cried. I wondered vaguely if anyone heard me, if my cry had been mental or physical. I dove down again, searching for her. There! A flash of golden hair. I swam with all my might, straining my arms to reach her. I caught her arm and hauled her up, desperate for breath and her life. I sucked in air and pulled Yuki's head out of the water.  
  
" Damn it! Breathe, girl!" I screamed over the roar of the waves. I tried to pull her up, drag her soul away from the waves, but the very thing I was trying to get her away from pounded me back down. I could feel our body around us beginning to die.  
  
" No!" I screamed. I shook Yuki, still trying to hold us both up. " Wake up, please! Wake up!" My soul was beginning to fade. " No! NO! Wake up, Yuki! You've got so much to live for! Wake up!" The darkness was calling to me. " I don't want to go! I want her to live!" I screamed. But my protests were unheard by the curse that bound me. I was losing my grip.  
  
" Please, no." I begged pathetically, but my plea fell on deaf ears.  
  
*+*+*  
  
" What?!" I cried, frantic, but Himeko had fallen back onto the pillow, eyes closed.  
  
" Whaza matter?" Jounouchi asked stupidly, my cry having awoken him. Yugi was halfway through the room, and an upset look on his face vanished as I cried out.  
  
" What? What is it?" he asked, running over to me around the bed Yuki was laying on.  
  
" Himeko. She just said something about Yuki. Something like, 'We're losing her.'" I said.  
  
" Oh God." Yugi muttered, shoving me aside and pressing two fingers to Yuki's neck. He drew in a sharp breath and laid his hand over her mouth. I watched in silence while Jounouchi tried to figure out what was going on. Anzu walked in from the balcony and started when she saw Yugi lay his head on Yuki's chest. I would have laughed, had I not been terrified.  
  
" She's not breathing, and I can't find her pulse." Yugi said finally. Anzu screamed and I pushed Yugi aside.  
  
" Thank you, Mokuba." I muttered as I positioned my hands on her chest and began to perform CPR. Mokuba had, three years ago, talked me into taking a CPR training class with him. My eyes were trained on her face, watching for any sign of life.  
  
" What happens to Himeko if Yuki." Anzu asked, her voice shaking.  
  
" She goes back to her prison, according to Yami." Yugi said, sounding strangely calm. I tuned them out. Don't die, I begged silently, please don't die. I stopped pressing on her chest and closed her nose with my index finger and thumb. Then I pressed my lips to hers and blew air into her unbreathing lungs. Please don't take her from me, I pleaded, not now. 


	6. Foreboding

Yuki  
  
By: Rogue Fox  
  
Part Six. Foreboding  
  
I don't remember very much about the ten minutes I spent drifting on the verge of death. I remember feeling Himeko dragging my soul up from the confused, raging waves that represented my inner turmoil and exhaustion. I remember her yelling at me to breathe. I remember feeling our body die around us. I remember feeling the strength of her soul next to mine beginning to slip as she faded away. After that, it all grew hazy. I remember the darkness best. I felt floaty and free, like my limbs weren't connected to my body. There was a tiny pinpoint of light piercing the darkness, I remember that. I knew there was something important about that light. I could vaguely hear voices calling to me, pleading with me, from it.  
  
" Please, no." Himeko begged. She sounded far away.  
  
" Yuki, come back!" Seto cried. Then I realized, I remember, that the light was my life, slowly becoming smaller and weaker as I drifted farther away. Driven by a strength I didn't know I possessed, I reached for the light. It got closer, brighter. I blinked confusedly, coughing and sputtering. Suddenly, I felt very weighed down. Something was pushing against my lips and I tried to shove it away. The thing pulled away, and Seto's blue eyes peered anxiously at me, his hair falling messily over them.  
  
" Yuki?" he asked slowly, as though he couldn't believe what he was seeing. I coughed again. My lungs felt stale and weak. Suddenly, Seto grabbed me by the shoulders and pulled me to him, all in one swift movement. Pressed against his chest, it was even harder to breathe, but something about the frantic beat of his heart against my own chest was soothing and calmed my nerves. He was breathing hard, and I could smell the salt of sweat on his clothes. I coughed and sputtered more, peering over his shoulder at Yugi's worried face, Anzu sobbing silently next to him, and Jounouchi gripping the chair he was standing by like he would fall without it.  
  
" What's. wrong?" I managed to croak. With every breath, strength was flowing into my body. My breath was coming easier, and my mind clearer. Seto pulled away from me, held me at arm's length, and studied my face. My breath was normal now. " What's wrong?" I asked again, my voice almost completely normal.  
  
" You just. just died!" Anzu cried, wiping her tear-filled eyes and smiling at the same time. She laughed suddenly and hugged Yugi, whose tense expression melted into one of joy. Jounouchi grinned and fell to the ground, laughing as well.  
  
" I what?" I asked, suddenly remembering the waves, Himeko trying to save me, the darkness. Himeko! I cast about mentally for her, and she answered weakly.  
  
I'm here. she thought. I felt tired just listening to her. That was a close call, huh, girl? she asked. I chuckled mentally.  
  
Thank you, Himeko. I owe you. I thought.  
  
You owe me nothing. I owed you. You saved my sorry soul when we were facing Pegasus, so I had to return the favor. Let's just hope neither one of us has to save the other ever again. she said. Now, if you'll excuse me, I'm going to sleep. And with that, she was gone, fast asleep, deep down inside me. I smiled up at Seto, who smiled back and hugged me again.  
  
" God, you scared me. I thought I'd lost you." He said. I smiled wider into his shoulder.  
  
" I'd never leave you and the boys. Never." I told him. And I meant it.  
  
It was a few hours before Seto let me out of his sight. Even then, it was only to use the bathroom. I was exhausted, and after night fell over the Nile, I drifted to sleep in the girls' room, comforted by the knowledge that Seto was right next door, Mai and Anzu were hardly ten feet away, and Himeko was inside me, her strength slowly returning. I did dream, though. Several dreams. First, I dreamed that I was trapped in a complex maze. Every few minutes, my body was lacerated. As the dream went on, it became evident that the idea was to get through the maze as quickly as possible. In the dream, I was bloody, weak, and dying. When I woke, I decided that my near-death experience was giving me nightmares. Leave it to me to come up with something like that, I thought, and then went back to sleep. Next, I dreamed that I was walking down a dark corridor, all alone. Something was sneaking up behind me, and I tried to run away from it. I was scared pretty badly and screamed like a madwoman. Finally, the thing chasing me caught up to me, grabbed my arm and wheeled me around. I saw Seto's face, smiling evilly at me. He put his hands around my neck and started to choke me. I almost screamed when I woke up from that one. The last one was the worst. I was playing chess against someone, I couldn't see who. Someone was screaming at me in the background, but I couldn't make out the words or distinguish the voice. Now, chess is one of my favorite games. I love playing it, and I'm pretty good. The game started and I soon lost the first piece, a pawn. Someone else screamed the minute my opponent picked up the piece. I looked to my left and saw Yoshi, Yukio, and Mokuba. Yoshi had a bloody gash on his chest.  
  
" For every piece you lose, your brothers will suffer one slash of a knife." My opponent said. Now I could see him clearly. It was Pegasus.  
  
" You're a sick monster." I told him.  
  
" Maybe. But I'm in control, so this sick monster gets to make all the rules." He said, laughing.  
  
" I'll make you pay for every drop of blood you spill from the people I love. I'll make you pay dearly." I promised him. I lost another piece soon after, and Mokuba was cut on the cheek. Pegasus was true to his word. For every piece I lost, one of the boys was cut. I started to cry when I lost my bishop, and Yukio was cut on the back. The floor was red with blood. Then I woke up. I was crying, and my pillow was soaked with sweat and tears.  
  
" Oh God." I mumbled to myself. I felt sick to my stomach. All the dreams had been so real! I had been able to smell the stench of blood, feel Seto's cold hand when he grabbed me, even taste the deadness of the air in all of the dreams. I rushed to wipe my eyes. " It's just a dream. Just a stupid dream." I told myself, even though I was thoroughly spooked. I wanted to sneak into the boys' room and curl up with Seto, but I didn't dare. I was well aware of what that would look like to the others. I seriously contemplated waking Mai or Anzu up, but I didn't want to be a nuisance. So, I sung myself a lullaby that my great-grandmother had sung to me as a child, and I soon drifted into a fitful sleep, haunted by echoes of nightmares (some of them might have been Himeko's) that I couldn't remember when I woke up.  
  
*+*+*  
  
It was hot. I mean, like heat-index-is-two-hundred-degrees hot. I suppose that's what we got for sitting on the guys' balcony in Egypt, but still, it was HOT. I was worrying silently about Yugi. He had been unusually quiet since I had talked to him the day before. I wondered if maybe I had said something that had upset him. Maybe he was trying to figure out how to break it to Yami that I had a crush on him. I hoped that wasn't the case. I didn't want Yami to know about my silly crush. It was just a crush, and I knew that. I knew that especially well after seeing his past. Yami already loved someone, dearly enough to take all her pain upon himself. I really doubted that Yami would ever love anyone ever again, and certainly not me. Even though I looked almost exactly like Mariah. I wasn't Mariah, though. I was Anzu, and it was as simple as that. I drew my attention back to my original train of thought. Yugi. Yugi, who I trusted more than any other person in the world.  
  
" I just don't get you, Yuki. You live with the most powerful teenager in the world, and he's a total hunk, and you don't even think of him as anything more than a brother?" Mai asked Yuki. I tuned into their conversation, interested in Yuki's reply.  
  
" Yes." She said simply. " Even if I did think of him as something more, and I do say if, I'm just not ready for any sort of romantic relationship right now." Yuki shrugged. Mai shook her head.  
  
" He lavishes attention and affection on you. He's protective, almost overbearing. And you tell me you're positive he feels the same way you do? No romantic motivation at all?" Mai asked.  
  
" Yes. Seto never had much of a family, so he doesn't really know how to be affectionate for anyone. The only adult that ever was affectionate with him was my mom, and I look a lot like her, so I think it has something to do with that." Yuki said. " As for protective, he likes knowing his assets are safe. He's the same with his family. He feels much more relaxed, knowing me and the boys are safe." I could understand how Yuki felt about Kaiba. I felt the same for Yugi. Affectionate, friendly, sometimes even a little flirtatious, but mostly I loved Yugi for being my friend. We weren't nearly as close as Kaiba and Yuki, and I was far too shy to just curl up against him, lay my head in his lap, or let him stroke my hair like Yuki did to Kaiba and act like it was nothing. But I felt the same way, and I was sure Yugi knew it.  
  
We girls were on our own, with the exception of Kaiba, who was typing away at his laptop in the room behind us, and Jounouchi, who was sleeping in the girls' room. Honda and Yugi had gone out to get something to eat. Nothing on the room service menu sounded particularly good, and these people didn't seem to know what a Big Mac was.  
  
" You know what I want? A double bacon cheeseburger. That sounds absolutely divine right now." Mai said suddenly, as though she had heard my thoughts.  
  
" I'd kill for an American Almond Joy right now." Yuki admitted. " Japan's great, but you people need to work on your candy bars." She told us. I laughed.  
  
" I want a Big Mac. Bad." I confessed.  
  
" I also wouldn't mind a bathing suit right now. I could work on my tan and get a head start on the girls back home." Mai added.  
  
" That would be nice." I agreed. Yuki chuckled. Her skin was naturally a dark olive, so she didn't need to tan.  
  
" I'm bored. I want to do something." Mai whined. Yuki nodded her agreement.  
  
" I wish I had a book to read." She said. I brightened as an idea struck me.  
  
" Hey, maybe we can go buy some bathing suits and go swimming in that pool downstairs." I suggested. Mai cooed approvingly, but Yuki bit her lip.  
  
" What about Pegasus?" she asked. That rained on our parade really fast. " Sorry." Yuki added quickly upon seeing our disheartened faces.  
  
" Well, what about Pegasus?" Mai said bravely. " The guys went out to get food, so why can't we go on a quick shopping spree to get suits? Heck, why can't they come with us? We can't spend the rest of our lives cowering in this hotel and just sit quietly like good little girls with our hands folded in our laps. A girl's gotta have some fun every now and then, and I think we're owed a good deal of fun." Mai reasoned.  
  
" That's all well and good, but how are you going to get past the watchdog, Ms. Courageous?" I asked, pointing through the sliding glass door to Kaiba.  
  
" That would be a problem." She admitted. " He won't listen to a word I say."  
  
" He's never listened to me when I really wanted him to before, and I don't think he's going to start now." I said. Mai and I looked at each other and then at Yuki, grinning.  
  
" What?" Yuki asked, bewilderment and even a little bit of fear on her face. Only Yuki would have not figured out what we wanted by now.  
  
" You can talk him into letting us go!" I cried. Yuki looked around herself and then pointed to her chest.  
  
" Me?" she asked.  
  
" Yes, you." I replied, exasperated. That girl could be so naïve!  
  
" I don't think-" Yuki started, but Mai cut her off.  
  
" He always listens to you. Just smile, like this-" Mai paused to show Yuki what she meant, smiling flirtatiously. " And flip your hair, like this-" Again Mai paused to give Yuki an example, flipping her hair seductively and looking over her shoulder, still smiling. I giggled. " And men will do whatever you want." Yuki stared for a moment.  
  
" I really don't think that will work on Seto." She said finally. Mai sighed.  
  
" Why won't it? He's a guy, right?" she asked. Mai was totally unaware of the fact that there might be a guy out there who was immune to her charm, or that of any other girl she considered worthy.  
  
" Well, yeah, but-" Yuki began, only to be cut off again.  
  
" You're gorgeous, girl! You'll knock him dead!" Mai encouraged. Yuki bit her lip again, a habit she had when she was nervous, anxious, upset, stressed, or aware that she was about to say something someone wouldn't like. She had been biting her lip often the last few days.  
  
" Do I have to do all that stuff?" she asked. Mai cocked an eyebrow.  
  
" You got a better way?" she asked incredulously.  
  
" For Seto, yes. I can get my way with him if I really want to." Yuki offered.  
  
" Now this, I've gotta see." Mai said, stepping aside and letting Yuki pass her. Yuki opened the sliding glass door and slipped into the room, shutting it behind her.  
  
" That girl is something else." I said.  
  
" Have you ever met anyone as utterly unaware that the entire world could be on a platter in front of her if she wanted it? That she could have anything she wanted?" Mai asked, awed.  
  
" And as totally capable of handling anything that comes her way, despite that naivete? No, I haven't. She's in a class all her own." I answered.  
  
" I think Kaiba agrees with that statement." Mai observed as Yuki grabbed Kaiba around the neck and said something to him. The look on Kaiba's face and the fact that Mai had a ton of experience in that area convinced me she was right.  
  
" Yep." I giggled. Yuki smiled suddenly and waved at us, signaling to come in. I followed Mai in.  
  
" What's up?" Mai asked innocently. The theater lost a great actress when Mai decided she wanted to be a fashion designer.  
  
" The guys are back with dinner, and after that, we're all going to go shopping for bathing suits and stuff." Yuki said triumphantly.  
  
" You girls were scheming behind my back, weren't you?" Kaiba accused.  
  
" Well, you were turned away from us." Yuki said. Mai and I cracked up, but the bewildered look on Yuki's face told me she had been serious. I turned away from the scene to pounce Yugi affectionately.  
  
" Whadja get, whadja get?" I asked excitedly.  
  
" Hamburgers." Yugi said, still in that quiet, subdued manner that had been worrying me. " They taste funny, though." He added. I leapt past him. Honda and Jou, the pigs, had already snagged their share. Apparently, the aroma of food had woken Jou. I pulled out a hamburger as Yuki came rushing up.  
  
" Fast food!" she cried, yanking out a burger for herself. " Please taste like home, please taste like home." she pleaded as she unwrapped it and took a bite. A disgusted look crossed her soft features, but she managed to swallow. She looked a little green to me. " Yeah, that's home, but not the part I wanted."  
  
" What do you mean?" Honda asked around a mouthful of burger. The taste didn't seem to bother him or Jou at all.  
  
" I wanted something like McDonald's. What'd I get? The school cafeteria's cardboard burgers." Yuki explained. " Yuck." She added.  
  
" Blegh!" Mai cried, nearly spitting her burger out. " Ugh, where'd you get these things? Off the street?" she asked.  
  
" The best burger place in this whole God-forsaken area." Yugi said, grimacing as he tried a bite of mine.  
  
" Cardboard is a good description." Mai said, shaking her head.  
  
" You know, I'm really not that hungry." I said. " Trying to keep a good figure, you know?" I added, handing my burger to Yugi, who immediately shoved it back.  
  
" And what makes you think I want it?" he asked.  
  
" I'm with Anzu. That room service chicken salad doesn't sound so bad. We girls have to watch our weight, you know." Mai said.  
  
" Um, yeah. I had plenty cardboard burgers at school back in America. Let's leave these things where they belong."  
  
" The Dumpster?" Mai said hopefully.  
  
" I think I can wait till breakfast." Kaiba said, setting his burger on the small table where the bags the nasty things had come in had been set. Jou and Honda were more than willing to eat our shares. After the pigs were done stuffing their faces, Mai, Yuki, and I dragged the lot of them down the stairs of the hotel, out the door, and into the shopping district. Yuki had somehow managed to get Kaiba to fund the little expedition, so Mai had every intention of going all out and making Yuki and I do it too. Yuki, however, is naturally inclined to lean toward simplicity and thus less expensive than Mai's attachment to designer labels. As for me, I was glad that I wasn't paying for it, but too shy to want to buy anything I thought was too expensive. The guys couldn't have cared one way or the other, although Yugi did go off by himself to find his own bathing suit, which I think had a lot to do with the fact that he had to go to the little kids' section. Guys are easy enough to please in the area of swim suits, but if you're a girl. It's a delicate art that can't be taken lightly. Even Yuki agreed with that philosophy.  
  
" There's no way I'm wearing that. No offense, but that looks like something my grandma wore once, and only once." Yuki proclaimed, gesturing to a one piece I had pointed out. I looked at it closely.  
  
" You're right." I agreed. Mai sauntered out of the dressing room, done up in a bright red bikini Yuki and I would have never dared to even touch. Yugi would have rather eaten dirt than let me out of the store with something like that, and Kaiba probably would have thrown a ring-tailed fit if Yuki had even shown an interest in it, but Mai had no such restrictions. Honda and Jou gaped at her, mouths wide open.  
  
" What do you think?" Mai asked nonchalantly.  
  
" Um, don't you think that's a bit showy, Mai?" I asked. Yuki and I were actually a little concerned for Mai, what with the image she was projecting in that little number.  
  
" This thing?" Mai asked, indicating to her scanty outfit. " Nah, this is just right. I think I'll buy it."  
  
" Okay." Yuki said uncertainly.  
  
" Hurry up and get dressed. I'm next in the dressing room." I said, holding up a more conservative tankini I had snatched.  
  
" Well, on second thought." Mai said, suddenly uncertain, looking down at her exquisite figure. Our male audience, sitting off a little ways and staying very quiet, continued to gape. " Are you guys sure it doesn't make me look fat?" Mai asked, looking back up at Yuki and I. I had a hard time imaging Mai looking fat in anything, but it was good to know that she had the same self-conscious worries as I did.  
  
" Absolutely not." I said solidly. " You look great. You might as well have put 'em under hypnosis." I said, indicating to the guys. Yugi and Kaiba were both tactfully inspecting everything but Mai, and Jou and Honda just sat there, still gaping. Mai smiled at my statement, flashing the guys a despairing glance.  
  
" It doesn't take much, does it?" she asked. " Alright then. Look out, pool, cause here I come!" she cried, turning on her heel and moving back into the dressing room to change. Yugi literally breathed a sigh of relief.  
  
" Okay, it only took half an hour for her to decide. How long will it take you, Anzu?" Kaiba asked, glancing at his watch. Yuki smiled at him, but I stuck my tongue out.  
  
" Fifteen minutes, at most. I've already got it narrowed down to three." I said showing him my three choices, the previously mentioned pink tankini with white Hawaiian-print flowers, a forest green one piece, and a dark blue back-less one piece. Yuki also held up her two choices, a black one piece that could be unzipped a little in the front, and a blue bikini with a tube top that had small, white spaghetti straps and shorts for a bottom. I think Yuki was already favoring the latter.  
  
It took me ten minutes to decide, with Mai and Yuki's help, on the pink suit, while Yuki took a quick five minutes and only one trip out of the dressing room to decide on her own bikini. By that time, the guys were pretty insistent.  
  
" It's hot, I wanna swim now!" Jou complained. Honda seconded that motion. We finally bought all our bathing suits and headed back to the hotel. Kaiba had even bought all three of us girls silk wraps that matched our bathing suits. Naturally, he was rewarded for his trouble. Mai's idea of rewarding him was by actually acknowledging his presence as a human being, my idea was a simple thank you and a smile. Yuki gave him a hug, to which he blushed. Directly after that, we all trouped back to the hotel, changed, and hit the pool. Quite literally.  
  
" Cannon ball!" Jou cried, taking a running leap at the pool. He made a pretty big splash, but the pool was really big. We were actually getting in on the indoor part, but the pool went under a glass window to outside, where it was even bigger.  
  
" Aw, come on!" Honda yelled. " I can do better than that!" that said, Honda ran and jumped. I laughed.  
  
" That was pathetic, Honda! Anyone could beat that little splash!" I called. Honda spit some water out of his mouth and grinned.  
  
" Then let's see you do it!" he called back.  
  
" Cannon ball contest!" Yugi yelled, grinning like I hadn't seen him do in a long time. " First up, Jou!" he added. Jou climbed back out of the pool. Yuki and I sat down at the edge of the pool, and Mai jogged over to join us. Jou walked up to us and gave the three of us a clumsy bow.  
  
" Would you lovely ladies be the judge panel?" he asked. Mai giggled.  
  
" Sure." Yuki agreed. Jou took his jump a moment later, giving all of us a good spray.  
  
" I give that an eight out of ten." I said. " Judging by the height and width of the splash." I added.  
  
" I'd give it a nine." Mai said.  
  
" And that's a totally unbiased opinion?" I asked her. Yuki cocked an eyebrow and looked at Mai expectantly.  
  
" Totally." Mai agreed, not even flinching.  
  
" I give it an eight-point-five." Yuki said, nodding.  
  
" Hah! Beat that, you wusses!" Jou yelled to the remaining guys. Yugi grinned again.  
  
" Next, we have Honda the Horrible." He cracked, earning a chorus of shrieking giggles on our part.  
  
" That was not funny." Honda said, giving Yugi a serious look. Yugi just grinned at him. Honda made his jump, to which Kaiba and Yugi promptly booed.  
  
" That was like, a two!" Mai yelled.  
  
" Definitely a two!" I agreed.  
  
" I'll be nice and give it a three." Yuki said, flashing Honda a sympathetic smile.  
  
" At least someone's nice here!" Honda called.  
  
" And third, we have Seto Kaiba. Let's see if the third time really is a charm." Yugi said, putting on an announcer voice.  
  
" Who needs a charm?" Kaiba asked, just before he took his running leap.  
  
" Hmm. I give it an eight-point-five." I said after Kaiba resurfaced, brushing his wet hair out of his face.  
  
" Nine." Mai said decisively.  
  
" Oh, decisions, decisions." Yuki said, shaking her head. " Oh, to heck with it. A ten."  
  
" Hah! Beat that!" Kaiba cried triumphantly.  
  
" Talk about unbiased opinions." Mai said  
  
" You know, I think this judge panel is rigged." Honda said.  
  
" Oh, you're just whining 'cause you got a bad score." Jou said, pushing Honda under the water.  
  
" A good splash is a good splash, and Kaiba made a good splash." I said, shrugging. " You're up next, Yugi!" I called. Yugi positioned himself and took his running leap.  
  
" Geranamo!" he cried before hitting the water. The splash was tremendous.  
  
" Whoa!" I cried.  
  
" Ah! My hair's soaked!" Mai cried. I laughed as Yugi came up, sputtering and trying to get his bangs out of his eyes.  
  
" Well, how was that?" he asked.  
  
" Ten!" Mai, Yuki, and I all said in unison.  
  
" I declare Yugi Motou the winner!" I cried.  
  
" I don't believe it! We got beaten by a squirt!" Jou cried. Kaiba seemed to forget to tread water, because his head suddenly slipped under. Yuki stood and I followed her.  
  
" That's Mr. Squirt to you, buddy." Yugi said, smirking in a fashion so much like Yami's it was scary.  
  
" Watch out, boys! Here we come!" I yelled. Yuki giggled as the two of us ran and jumped him, causing a rather large splash. We came up laughing and coughing from all the water we breathed in while we were laughing. Jou swam up to Mai, who was still sitting on the edge of the pool, as I tried to dunk Honda, to no avail.  
  
" Come on, Mai, get in." Jou pleaded, pulling on Mai's arm.  
  
" No." Mai said stubbornly. I saw Yuki sneaking out of the water and behind Mai. She put a finger to her lips and signaled to me to be quiet. She pushed Mai in from behind, who sputtered and yelled protests about her hair. After that, we swam outside, under the glass, to the shallower water and played a game that Yuki knew called chicken. The first round found me perched on Honda's shoulders and Mai on Jou's. The idea was for Mai and I to try and knock the other down. The first girl to hit the water was the loser. Yuki was planning to play the winner with Kaiba. Yugi sat on the edge and watched us, laughing at my struggles to stay on Honda's shoulder. Finally, I escaped from the game to a small, secluded part of the pool that one had to swim under a quaint little bridge to get to from inside the pool. Yugi followed me around the edge. My stomach scraped the bottom and I sat up.  
  
" It's only a foot or so deep." I said to Yugi, who stepped into the water.  
  
" Feels good." He said. I smiled at him.  
  
" Wow, look at that." I said, pointing over his shoulder. He followed my gaze to a beautiful tree that had blossomed in the spring months, with delicate pink blossoms floating on the gentle breeze off the tree to float in the water.  
  
" Wow." He agreed, scooting through the water to sit next to me.  
  
" It's like something from a dream." I said, sniffing the breeze. The sweet aroma of blossoms teased my nose, underlined by the tart scent of alcohol from the poolside bar. I laid back in the water, propping my head up with my arms. Yugi followed my example. " It's so perfect." I said, rolling my head to look at Yugi. He was smiling softly, probably more happily than I had seen him in a long time. I wondered what went on in that head of his, what sort of turmoil he faced with another person living in his head. I wondered what he thought about my silly crush on Yami. Yugi turned his head suddenly to see me staring at him.  
  
" What?" he asked me, breaking me from my reverie.  
  
" Nothing." I said quickly. " This place. It's so enchanting, isn't it?" I asked him, trying to change the subject.  
  
" You mean the spot in particular or Egypt as a whole?" Yugi asked.  
  
" Both, I guess." I said after a moment's thought.  
  
" Yes, on both counts. It's like a spider's web. You get all caught up in it and tangled and then you can't get out. Like a lot of other things." Yugi said. I looked at him curiously.  
  
" What other things?" I asked.  
  
" I don't know." Yugi said, looking away from me.  
  
" What other things?" I insisted, noticing the faint color of a blush on Yugi's cheeks.  
  
" Like. Like love, I guess." He said finally, turning his face almost completely away from me.  
  
" Love?" I asked, unsure as to what he meant.  
  
" Love." Yugi confirmed. " It's like a spider's trap. You're just walking along, minding your own business, and the next thing you know, you're all tangled up and you can't get away. And you're not even sure if you want to." I stared at him. Was that bitterness I detected in his voice?  
  
" Hey, Yugi! Let's go check out that café and see if they've got anything to eat! I'm starved!" Jou called. Yugi stood up, and I watched him.  
  
" You just ate all those burgers!" Yugi protested, wading through the water to the side of the pool.  
  
" So? What's your point?" Jou asked.  
  
" Oh my God. What are you, an endless pit?" Kaiba asked.  
  
" It'd take an entire large nation of food to feed those two for a week." Mai said. I guessed she was referring to Honda too. I watched Yugi approach the other guys, smiling and laughing, but I couldn't get what he had said out of my mind. ".and you can't get away. And you're not even sure if you want to." He had said. What had he meant? Why did he sound so angry and bitter when he said it? Who broke your heart, Yugi? I wondered to myself. I swear, if I ever find out who did it, I'll make her pay. You're so sweet and nice and wonderful, what kind of girl could ever make you hurt and not feel terrible?  
  
It was a few hours later before we had freed ourselves from our appetites.  
  
" That was good." Kaiba said finally. We had all eaten like pigs, but swimming makes you hungry.  
  
" These wraps you got us are really useful. I don't think they would have let us in the place without them." Yuki said. We girls had fashioned our wraps into dresses so we could get into the café. The guys had all simply thrown on some shirts.  
  
" Let's get out of here. It's cold." Mai complained.  
  
" I guess I'll pick up the check." Kaiba said, reaching for his wallet, which he had thankfully remembered to bring.  
  
" I swear I'll pay you back, but I don't have any money on me." Yugi said, looking helpless.  
  
" Of course you don't. You're still soaking wet." Kaiba said tolerantly. I don't think he really minded paying for our meal. Besides, it wasn't like he particularly needed the money. We left the café after Kaiba had paid and started wandering aimlessly around, peeking into gift shops the hotel had in it and just messing around, being teenagers. But I still couldn't forget what Yugi had said. I wanted to ask him about it, but not around the others. Yuki was naïve enough to not question that conversation, if it happened at all, but the others were more inquisitive. Mai in particular was probably dying for a bit of juicy gossip to chew on.  
  
We saw the men in suits for the first time that night at about eight o'clock. We tried to head in another direction, all of us beginning to feel anxious, but there were more. We soon figured out we were surrounded, trapped in a circle that was slowly shrinking as the men were getting closer. There was nobody around. I wondered how all the other people had suddenly disappeared.  
  
" Well, we're pretty damn-well screwed." Jou said. I knew Jou only started to cuss when he got really stressed or frightened. Yuki was biting her lip, so hard I thought it might start bleeding soon.  
  
" No duh, Sherlock." Honda said tersely. I jumped and squealed as one of the goons grabbed my arm.  
  
" Ah! Let me go!" I shrieked. Honda was closest and decked the guy. I noted that Yugi also kicked him in the shin. However, while we were busy with that guy, another grabbed Mai around the waist.  
  
" Hey, get your filthy hands off me!" Mai cried, kicking and flailing ferociously.  
  
" Get away from her!" Jou shouted, but another goon grabbed him.  
  
" Um, uh-oh?" Yuki asked pathetically. She and Kaiba had managed to get themselves surrounded by about six goons. Yuki suddenly lashed out with a kick I thought only a black belt could pull. Unfortunately, wherever Yuki had learned to kick like that, the goon she kicked at had learned how to block it. He grabbed her foot and tossed her to the ground. After that, she was up and running like a madwoman, and with good reason. At least five thugs were chasing her.  
  
" Help! Put me down!" I screamed as a goon picked me up and tossed me over his shoulder like a rag doll. Yugi made a dash to my rescue, but was scooped up by yet another goon. Still another black-suit had put Honda, who had been fighting ferociously, in a full nelson and was pushing him along out of the hotel grounds. Kaiba was knocked out and carried along. I guess they figured he was too much of a hassle to keep awake. Mai looked at me from her position, her back against a particularly large guy who had her arms pinned to her sides by wrapping his tree trunk-thick ones around her.  
  
" I suppose we really should just get used to this." She said. " But that doesn't necessarily mean we have to take it." She added. And with that, she immediately began struggling, to know avail. I flailed my fists, but the guy over whose shoulder I was tossed didn't even seem to notice. Yuki cocked a very annoyed eyebrow at me. She had finally been caught from her frantic running and attempts to thwart her pursuers. It had been almost funny. She had resorted to picking up flowerpots and throwing them at the goons. Now, she was walking almost calmly in front of yet another goon, her right arm twisted fully around her back.  
  
" You girls okay?" Yugi called. I couldn't see him, his captor was in front of mine.  
  
" Sure. Why wouldn't we be?" I asked sarcastically.  
  
" I'm only in the arms of a guy I'd rather kill." Mai cracked.  
  
" Don't talk to me. I'm trying to avoid getting my arm broken." Yuki snapped. I had never heard her so aggressive. Of course, her last encounter with these goons had left her on the verge of death, so I couldn't really blame her.  
  
" Yep, they sound just fine to me." Honda said. I couldn't see him, but he sounded okay.  
  
" Jou? Where are you?" Mai called. I could almost hear a tinge of fear in her voice. Mai, afraid? Now I was really worried.  
  
" Up here. Nothing to worry about, Mai. We'll just whip Pegasus's ass one more time, and that'll be that." He called back. Mai, who I actually could see, looked a little more reassured.  
  
" Hey, question for the big guys in black suits!" I called. The one carrying me grunted. I took that for a " What?" " Exactly where are we going?" I asked.  
  
" To the Boss." The one twisting Yuki's arm said.  
  
" I might have guessed that." I snapped. " What does he want with us?" I asked.  
  
" To play a game." The one carrying the still unconscious Kaiba responded. Yuki gave him a death glare, as though she thought his very existence was an insult to her. I thought that might have a lot to do with his hurting Kaiba.  
  
" Great. Somehow, I'm not excited." Yugi said.  
  
" Pegasus's idea of a game always involves pain for everybody but him." Jou complained. Mai scowled and I gave her a sympathetic look. Suddenly, I felt something on my rear. I gasped.  
  
" Hey, if you must hold me like this, keep your hands where they belong, buddy!" I cried. There was the sound of a scuffle up ahead.  
  
" Get your dirty hands off Anzu!" I heard Yugi yell.  
  
" I'm fine, Yugi!" I called to him.  
  
" Like hell you're fine!" Yugi called. I started. I had never heard Yugi curse before. I had never heard him say anything worse than "crap." Kaiba moaned, but stayed in his unconscious haven. Yuki tried an experimental tug that left her wincing.  
  
" Right, that's not going to work." She muttered. I kicked my legs, which were swung over the goon's front, trying to cause my captor some pain. I laughed triumphantly when I my foot connected with his gut and I heard him groan as the air rushed out of his lungs. I was not going to make this job easy for him.  
  
" Okay, guys, this officially sucks." Honda said.  
  
" It's just now official?" Mai asked, annoyed.  
  
" Keep yourselves together, guys!" Yugi called. Honda was right, though. This really did totally suck. And it was getting worse with each step the goons took. 


	7. Bad Things Always Come In Threes

Yuki  
  
By: Rogue Fox  
  
Part Seven. Bad Things Always Come In Threes  
  
I was unceremoniously dropped into a rather comfortable chair, looking around myself. Yuki, just to my right, was forced into a sitting position by her captor. To my left, Mai was also forced to sit. We were in a room dimly lit by a cozy fire. The room was rather luxurious, but that hardly surprised me. What did surprise me was that none of the guys were with us.  
  
" Where's Seto?" Yuki demanded of her burly captor, who was standing over her as though he expected her to sprint away at any moment. The last I had seen him, Kaiba had been unconscious and was being dragged along by another goon. Then, the guys, Yugi and Kaiba included, were dragged off in a different direction, yelling their heads off, with the exception of Kaiba. Naturally, we had followed their example, to no avail other than rough threats from the men carrying or pushing us along. Yuki rubbed her right arm sorely and glared at her captor. She still seemed to be taking this whole thing as a personal insult. Mai was no different, glaring at her own captor, then mine, and then Yuki's, methodically. I stared sullenly at the fire, slumping in my chair. I was tired, angry, and thoroughly annoyed.  
  
" Anzu?" Mai requested of me suddenly.  
  
" What?" I asked tersely.  
  
" What's going to happen to us?" she asked. I broke my staring contest with the fire off to look at her. She looked so helpless. It was weird for me, because I had always seen Mai as a strong feminine figure, totally fearless. I admired her, but I was also jealous of her. I had always wanted to be as beautiful as she was, to have men look at me the way they looked at her. She was so lucky, so utterly unafraid of anyone or anything. But now, without the reassurance of our other friends, and I think without Jou in particular, she looked so lost and afraid. I felt suddenly afraid myself. Up until that moment, I had merely been angry and annoyed with the whole situation. Now, Mai's fear was scaring me like I should have been scared a while ago.  
  
" I don't know." I admitted. Yuki was watching us, a little fear creeping into her features.  
  
" I'm scared." Yuki said suddenly. Mai and I looked at her. I searched for something comforting to say, but the more I thought about it, the worse it looked for us.  
  
" We'll be okay." I said, trying to force more confidence than I actually had into my voice. Mai smiled, but I don't think she or Yuki really believed what I said.  
  
" What about Himeko?" Mai suddenly asked of Yuki. Yuki started. It appeared she had forgotten about the other girl in her head.  
  
" She's still asleep." Yuki said after a moment. I gawked at her.  
  
" You mean she slept through all that?" I asked in disbelief. Yuki almost smiled. Almost.  
  
" Yeah, she did." She said. Mai chuckled, but it sounded forced and didn't last too long. We sat in silence for a moment, waiting for something to happen. Our patience was rewarded. The door we had been forced through, which was behind us now, was suddenly thrown open.  
  
" I'm so sorry, ladies! Please forgive me for being so tardy!" an all too familiar voice cried. I craned my neck to see its owner, but I already knew who it was. Yuki scowled and slumped into her chair, adopting my previous sullen glare for her own. Mai exchanged a helpless look with me, as if to ask " Why did it have to be him? Why can't we get kidnapped by someone new for a change?"  
  
" Well, how are you lovely ladies on this fine Egyptian evening?" Pegasus asked, stepping into our view and taking his seat in a chair facing ours. Yuki directed her glare at the white-haired man and cocked an annoyed eyebrow.  
  
" Fabulous, just waiting for the moment when it'll get better." She said, still glaring. Pegasus seemed immune to the glare I had seen stop Kaiba in his tracks.  
  
" Oh? And when's that?" he asked, reaching for an elegant glass of wine. I briefly wondered how he could drink all that wine and not get totally drunk.  
  
" When we get to kill you." Mai finished for Yuki.  
  
" Oh, now that's not very nice." Pegasus remarked. I was about to say something very rude about how we didn't really give a rat's butt about being nice to him, but instead I pursued a different topic.  
  
" Where are the guys?" I asked curtly. I was in no mood for his games. Unfortunately for me, according to the earlier statement from our captors, Pegasus's games were unavoidable.  
  
" Oh, they're about, somewhere." Pegasus said, evasively. I glared at him. I was sure Yuki and Mai were adding their own glares to the effort. Pegasus remained unaffected.  
  
" Alright, different question." I said. " Why are we here?"  
  
" That's easy." Pegasus told me, sipping from his glass and then swirling the contents. I waited none too patiently for his answer. " You are here play a few games. Actually, three games, to be exact." Pegasus told us.  
  
" Why three games?" Mai asked cautiously.  
  
" To prove that Miss Yuki's companion and our little Yugi's older self are worthy of the battle that was promised to them." Pegasus said, as though that were perfectly reasonable. I thought about asking why the rest of us had to go through the games, why not just Yuki and Yugi? Then I decided I didn't really care anyway. Yuki, who had remained quiet, had another question.  
  
" What if we decide we don't want to play your sick games?" she asked quietly.  
  
" My dear, I'm afraid you don't have a choice." Pegasus told her with a chuckle.  
  
" Don't call me 'dear.'" Yuki responded instantaneously.  
  
" Whatever you wish, Miss Yuki." Pegasus said automatically. Boy, I hated his prim and proper attitude. I just wanted to wipe that smug look off his face. But then again, those goons standing over us were a little imposing, a nice reminder not to do anything too rash. Still, one good swing, and I'd feel so much better.  
  
" Alright, then." Mai said suddenly, drawing herself up and trying to gather what was left of her dignity and composure. I followed her example, but Yuki continued to glare and sulk. " Let's get this over with. What's the first game?" Mai asked. Yuki looked on with mild interest. I was a little worried about her. I wondered if Himeko had woken up and was influencing her actions or if Yuki was acting this way on her own.  
  
" The first game, ladies, is a little number I like to call 'Bloody Maze.'" Pegasus said, smiling as like a normal guy would if he were thinking of a roller coaster he really liked. " It's exactly as it sounds. A maze. Pretty complex, but I have no doubt that bright young ladies like yourselves will be able to finish it. Although, I do warn you, you'd be in a better position if you tried to finish the maze as quickly as possible." Pegasus said, sitting up fully.  
  
" Why?" I asked.  
  
" You'll find out. I advise you to keep that in mind, along with a few other things; since the three of you will be in the maze at the almost the same time, you will be started exactly seven minutes apart from each other. You won't be allowed to come any closer than eight meters to another girl." Pegasus continued.  
  
" What about the guys?" Yuki asked, interrupting. I noticed she wasn't even biting her lip. She didn't appear in the least bit scared anymore. I did a double take to make sure it was really Yuki I was seeing, not Himeko. It was Yuki. Pegasus didn't appear too pleased with the interruption.  
  
" They will not be participating for this game." He said disdainfully.  
  
" How will you keep us from coming any closer than eight meters?" I asked. Again, Pegasus appeared displeased with the interruption.  
  
" Magic, of course. How else? If you're getting to close to another player, you'll know. Now, let's be off to the maze itself." Pegasus said, standing. We were also yanked to our feet, none too gently. Pegasus led the goons who pulled us along, all the while yacking about something that had to do with Egyptian weather. I wasn't really paying attention. I was too busy thinking about how I was not good at mazes, worrying about what penalties Pegasus had put in the game for staying in the maze too long. Wondering if those penalties would affect Yugi or the other guys. Scared that maybe they would.  
  
" Hey, you know what I just noticed?" Mai, just behind me, asked suddenly. Yuki grunted from behind her and I sighed.  
  
" What, Mai?" I responded tolerantly. Pegasus had even stopped his babble.  
  
" We're still in our bathing suits." Mai said. I started and looked sown at myself. Sure enough, I was still in my tankini, with my wrap around my waist.  
  
" Well, look at that." Yuki muttered.  
  
" And might I add," Pegasus began, looking over his shoulder at me. I was in the front of the single file line, right behind Pegasus. " That you all look lovely in them."  
  
" You keep your nasty mouth shut." Yuki demanded, followed by an " Ow! Hey, watch it!"  
  
" Gentle there, my faithful servant. Do remember that these are ladies we have with us. You must be careful with them." Pegasus said. I stuck my tongue out at his back. I know it was immature, but it was all I could think of and it made me feel a little better. " After all, we wouldn't want anything to 'accidentally' happen to them." Pegasus added. I swallowed. I didn't like the way he had said "accidentally" one little bit. Pegasus continued to lead us down a dark hallway. I noted there were several intersections where the hallway crossed other corridors. I also noticed that Pegasus continued going straight. Presuming he at least knew where he was going, I decided it might be useful to try to remember the path he took.  
  
Finally, Pegasus took a sharp left and guided us into a gigantic room. It was simply huge. It had to be, considering what it housed.  
  
" It's. a wall." I said, completely unimpressed.  
  
" No, it's a maze." Pegasus corrected as though he were speaking to a child. I glared at him. " Bloody Maze." He clarified, grinning at the big wall. There was a moment of silence. " Well, Miss Anzu, would you like to start us off?" Pegasus asked me finally. I stared at him like he was a maniac. Of course, he was, but you get the idea.  
  
" No." I said simply.  
  
" Oh, come now. Surely you want to prove you're just as brave as anyone else." Pegasus said. His voice sounded so perfectly reasonable. I jerked in shock. How could he have seen through me so easily? I noticed a golden glow from behind the white hair that covered the left side of his face. Oh, that's how. " Yes, I see it all. All in your head." Pegasus said, grinning at me. " You're so eager to prove yourself to be as strong as Jounouchi and Honda, beautiful as Mai, fearless as Yami and Himeko, selfless as Yuki, clever as Yugi. You feel so inferior-" Pegasus continued until my fuse blew.  
  
" Shut up!" I bellowed. Mai and Yuki stared at me. " I'll go! Just shut up!" I cried again.  
  
" That's a good girl." Pegasus admonished like I was a disobedient child who had corrected her ways. " And Mai, so eager to prove yourself as well. You want to prove you're a friend worth having. You want to earn their trust, not have it given to you."  
  
" Didn't I tell you to shut up?" I growled, despite the large hand of a goon that clamped on my shoulder. I shot a glance at Mai, who stared at Pegasus, shell-shocked. Did Mai really have those insecurities? Did she really feel like she had to earn our trust to truly be a part of us?  
  
" And Miss Yuki, your mind is a swirl of emotions and thoughts, some of which aren't even yours. You're so confused, you don't know who to trust and who to fear. You're frightened, you want your dear Kaiba back, and you want your brothers back. Oh, and such anger! Such a sweet girl, who would have thought you had so much anger in you? That's not good for you, my dear. Your mind is a clutter of chaos, and you just wish that you could go back to your ignorant bliss-" Pegasus rambled, ignoring my threats. Yuki stared at the floor. He had seen through us all like we were transparent.  
  
" I want to go into the maze!" I cried, desperate to attract Pegasus's attention.  
  
" Really? Well, if you insist." Pegasus said, taking out a pocket watch on a gold chain and looking at its face. " You have twenty-two seconds to prepare yourself." He told me. I was immediately dragged to the entrance of the maze, which was simply a break in the wall. " You may begin in four. three. two. one. GO!" Pegasus yelled. I jumped at the strength of his voice and darted into the maze. I was immediately confronted with a choice between left or right. I choose left, well aware that I might have to backtrack. I hate mazes. I'm no good at them, at all. Even relatively simple mazes stump me. I figured I had been in the maze for about a minute, and wondered what was happening with the guys, if they were okay. Suddenly, I felt a sharp pain on my arm.  
  
" Ow! What the-?" I asked out loud, glancing down at my left arm. There was a two-inch long bloody gash down the length of my arm. " Damn you, Pegasus." I muttered. A drop of blood fell on my silk wrap. I growled. Kaiba had bought that for me, and Yugi had picked it out. It angered me to no end that something that Pegasus had done had caused any amount of damage to it. I immediately took off again. I came to a dead end and turned around. After another minute or so, another gash appeared on me, this time on my right calf. " Damn you, Pegasus!" I repeated, louder this time. So this is what he meant by getting through the maze as fast as possible. I ran on, trying to ignore the throbbing pain. " This had better not scar." I muttered, eager to hear a human voice. I stopped and looked around myself, moaning. What would Yugi tell me to do? He would say something like follow your gut and use your head. Okay, what was my gut saying? I sighed and turned around, backtracking. " If I'm ever able to even look at a maze again, it'll be a miracle." I muttered. I came to a three way intersection, trying to remember if I had been here. I decided I hadn't. " Yugi, help me!" I moaned, even though I knew he couldn't possible hear me. Another cut appeared, on my left shoulder blade. I winced and followed the middle pathway, still inwardly crying out for Yugi's help.  
  
*+*+*  
  
For the millionth time in a row, I picked up the chain that held me to the wall and began inspecting it, link by link. I started with the link that was attached to my shackles and worked my way down, investigating every possibility for a weakness. Yami looked with me, sometimes snapping orders to turn the chain this way or that way. If he hadn't been in my head, I would have told him to go investigate his own chain. Unfortunately, Yami heard that thought.  
  
Well, it's not like I like being in here either, you know. he told me haughtily. I sighed outwardly.  
  
This is not the time to be arguing. The girls may need us. I told him. Yami decided this was true and returned to the chain. Pegasus had been prepared for us at every turn. The chains were strong, not a trace of weakness, not even a bit of rust. That annoyed Yami exceedingly, almost as much as Pegasus himself. A little to my left, Jou planted his feet firmly against the foot of the wall and began to pull on his chain. I looked up from my own method to watch him. His wrists, like Honda's, were bruised and bloody from where the shackles had been pulled against his flesh. Those two had been tugging and yanking on their chains, convinced that if they just kept pulling the chains would eventually break. I thought they might be right. The problem was, those chains weren't going to give for another century, and we didn't have that long to wait. I had known from the start that I lacked the physical prowess to do anything like that, so I put my brain to work instead. Now, what seemed like hours later, I was still right where I started. Chained to a wall. To my right, Kaiba moaned. I immediately turned my attention to him. Honda and Jou even stopped pulling on their chains.  
  
" Kaiba?" I asked. The young man raised his eyes to me, looking utterly and totally confused. Then annoyed. Then confused again.  
  
" What in the- What happened?" he asked me. I sighed again.  
  
" Pegasus got us again." I said.  
  
" And he's got us all chained to this damn wall." Jou told Kaiba. Honda growled and started pulling again. Kaiba sat up, gave his shackles and experimental tug, and then fell to examining his chain.  
  
" I've been trying that for a while now, but these chains are as stubborn as those two." I told him, indicating over my shoulder to Jou and Honda. Kaiba immediately dropped the chain and bowed his head in thought. I followed suit. I looked around me. Our cell had been carefully chosen. The cement walls appeared new and sturdy, not a crack in sight. The floor was the same. The chains were bolted to the wall with big screws, which were all firmly drilled into the wall. The chains themselves were obviously strong. The shackles were hard and clamped tight around our wrists, effectively binding our hands together at the wrists and chaining us. I raised my own shackles to investigate them. We had been shackled at the wrists but not at the feet. The shackles appeared to have no weak points either. Except. I noticed my shackles were not as tight as the other guys'.  
  
" Maybe." I muttered, immediately twisting my right hand maliciously, trying to squirm it out. I ignored the pain that resulted. Yami saw what I was up to and immediately began coaching me along.  
  
That's right, a little to the left. It's giving! Don't get excited, just keep twisting. Hey, maybe your being so small has its good points after all! Yami exclaimed.  
  
" Oh, shut up." I muttered out loud. " There!" I shouted, twisting my free wrist to work out the pain. There was a small trickle of blood, but I ignored it and began working at my other hand. This time, I had the aid of my free hand. The others had begun to notice I was up to something.  
  
" Way to go, Yugi!" Jou shouted, clanking his chain triumphantly as I pulled my hand free.  
  
" Shhh!" Kaiba hissed. " There's got to be guards around here. You want to call them all here?" he asked Jou, who clamped his mouth shut. Kaiba motioned to me. " Yugi, there's a hair pin in my right pocket. Get it out and see if you can pick the lock on my shackles." He whispered to me. " You two, keep pulling so no one thinks we've done anything." Jou and Honda nodded and started tugging again, trying hard to ignore Kaiba and I.  
  
" If you promise to forget about this as soon as it's over, so do I." I said to Kaiba before plunging my hand into his pocket.  
  
" Agreed." Kaiba said, almost sounding grateful.  
  
" What are you doing carrying around a hair pin anyway?" I asked Kaiba as I fished around in his pocket. I tried really hard not to think about it, but Yami was absolutely laughing it up. I growled inwardly at him, but I don't think he was particularly threatened. He just ignored me.  
  
" I always carry around a hair pin, just in case of emergencies like this. I would have gotten it out sooner, but I can't get into my pockets with these shackles on." Kaiba explained. I pulled out the hair pin in question and showed it to Kaiba in triumph.  
  
" Ta-daa." I intoned. Yami finally managed to stop laughing in my head for a moment.  
  
That was priceless. he told me. I'm never going to let either one of you live that down.  
  
" Yami wants me to tell you that he's not going to let us forget that little moment any time soon." I relayed to Kaiba mournfully. Kaiba made a sour face, but didn't say anything. Instead, he handed me his shackled wrists.  
  
" Push the pin in, yeah, like that. Turn it to the right. No, my right. yeah, like that. Now a little to the left." Kaiba instructed. I tried to do what he told me to, but it was harder than it looked.  
  
" I take it you do this often?" I asked him. Kaiba shrugged, careful not to yank his wrists out of my grasp.  
  
" It's a talent I find rather useful." He said nonchalantly.  
  
" The things you learn when you're a teenage millionaire." I muttered.  
  
" I guess." He agreed. " Now, push it a little farther in. Okay, now a half turn to the right." he instructed. I heard the lock on the shackles snap open and Kaiba removed them from his wrists.  
  
" Good job, Yugi!" Jou cried quietly, still trying to look inconspicuous while pulling at his chains.  
  
" You're the man!" Honda agreed, also quietly. I handed Kaiba the pin, and nodded my acknowledgement. Kaiba got down on his hands and knees, crawled over to Jou, and picked the lock on his shackles in what made the time it took me look like eternity. He moved on to Honda, and soon, both were free and rubbing their bloody and bruised wrists.  
  
" When you two yank a chain, you really yank a chain." Kaiba said approvingly. Jou wiped a little dried blood off his arm and grinned.  
  
" Well, you know how it is. If you're gonna do something, do it all the way." he said.  
  
" I hope you can pick the lock on our cell door with your little toy, cause Yugi may be able to fit through those bars, but I doubt the rest of us can." Honda said, motioning to the gate on the bars that held us in the cell. I frowned at the bars.  
  
" I don't think even I could fit through those bars. This cell was picked with my size in mind." I said. Kaiba walked up to the gate and experimentally reached through the bars, shoving his pin into the lock on the other side. He sighed.  
  
" Has anyone got a mirror on them?" he asked.  
  
" Um, no." Jou said.  
  
" Just thought I'd ask. Cause that would have made this a lot easier." Kaiba said. " Make yourselves comfortable, this could take a while."  
  
" I don't think we have a while." I told Kaiba.  
  
" I don't think so either, but we'll just have to deal with it." Kaiba said matter-of-factly. He went about the business of blindly picking the lock. All the while, I felt more and more anxious, and Yami echoed the feeling.  
  
My sister is in trouble. he thought suddenly.  
  
What? I asked.  
  
Isis is in trouble. She doesn't know it though. I think she still sleeps in Yuki's heart, but danger is drawing near to her. Yami clarified. It took me a moment to translate the name Isis into Himeko.  
  
How do you know? I asked.  
  
She's my twin. I know. Yami said simply.  
  
" We're running out of time." I said out loud. Kaiba grunted, still concentrating on the lock.  
  
" What do you mean?" Honda asked. The tension was clear on his face and in his voice.  
  
" I mean just what I said. We need to hurry." I told him. A few minutes passed.  
  
" Got it!" Kaiba cried suddenly, triumphantly swinging the gate open as quietly as possible. " Let's go." He demanded, leading the way out of the cell. Jou took the lead after that, because Kaiba, having been knocked out when we were brought here, had no memory of the guard station we had passed. Jou led us to the station, where we crouched by the door as Honda peered in.  
  
" Three. five. six of them." Honda announced in a hushed whisper.  
  
" We can take them if we use the element of surprise." Kaiba whispered. I gulped. Take them? I didn't think I could take any of those big brutes. I hate being small, I thought in exasperation.  
  
Let me. I'm bigger. Yami suggested. I gladly let him assume control of our body, which grew considerably. Now I felt more confident.  
  
" No theatrics, just get in there and get them down as fast as possible." Kaiba said. Jou and Honda nodded to show they agreed. Yami stayed silent. Jou started our little attack by lunging into the small square room and decking one of the men right on the nose. Honda and Kaiba were shortly behind him. The initial attack left four men down. Kaiba had pulled a double whammy, taking two down in his first lunge. Yami slipped into the room, on our hands and knees. He got behind a goon that was locked in combat with Honda, who was considerably smaller. Kaiba and Jou were both busy with another large guy. Yami stood up and tapped on the goon's shoulder.  
  
" Excuse me." He said out loud. If he were in a separate body, I might have strangled him.  
  
What are you doing?! I shrilled at him in our head.  
  
Saving Honda. he answered. The goon in question turned around. Yami promptly pressed his palm to the man's forehead.  
  
" Dark Oblivion!" he called. Instantly, with a billow in the air around us as the mind-crushing power flowed through our hand into the man's head, the man fell. It didn't have to pass through the air, only from our flesh to his, so it was very concentrated.  
  
" Thanks, Yugi. Or, Yami. Whoever that is." Honda said, doing a double take at us as the goon fell to the ground. Yami pulled our lips into a smirk, then gave me back control of our body, which shrank accordingly. Kaiba and Jou approached us, Jou rubbing his fist tenderly.  
  
" Those thugs have really hard skulls." Jou informed us. Kaiba smiled grimly, stepping past me to a computer console.  
  
" I might be able to hack into that maniac's mainframe from here, and get a map of this place. Somehow." He told us. I didn't like the way he said "somehow." It sounded like he doubted he could do that.  
  
" Can you?" I asked him.  
  
" With all the luck in the world? Maybe." Kaiba said, seating himself in front of the monitor, his hands already flying over the keyboard. His fingers hardly touched the keys at all. " This isn't my system, and I'm not familiar with this program. But I think I might be able to at least tap into some sort of security system, which would have to have a basic floor plan of some kind." He told us. Honda and Jou stared at his back blankly.  
  
" If you say so." Honda said.  
  
" Cross your fingers. If we've got a fraction of Yuki's luck, these idiots might be logged into the security system." Kaiba said, his typing speeding up. Jou happily obliged and crossed his fingers. Kaiba typed for what seemed like hours. " Hah! No hacking required! They are logged in!" Kaiba announced, the joy in his voice perfectly clear. I sighed in relief. The negligence of these guys had saved us precious minutes. In minutes, Kaiba was printing out a floor plan, studying the pages as they came out of the printer, while Jou, Honda, and I stared at a series of surveillance screens, trying to locate the girls. There were about seventy or so screens, and each one needed to be studied carefully, so it took a while. It was Honda who first saw the girls. It was only a flash, but he claimed to have seen Anzu run through a screen toward the top of the lot of them. In the one directly left of that one, I saw Anzu, still in her bathing suit, appear. She appeared to be lost in a maze of pathways. I couldn't help but notice, even under the circumstances, how pretty she was.  
  
" Anzu!" I cried out loud. She looked around, seemed to say something to herself, then took the center of three passages.  
  
" What the hell. This man is really maniac! There's a huge maze inside this place!" Kaiba cried, waving a print-off frantically. I looked at him, then back at the screens toward the top, which all showed a series of pathways criss-crossing each other. I noticed Yuki and Mai, both on separate screens. Anzu appeared on another screen. She looked like she had been cut, quite a few times. Something clicked in my head.  
  
" It's one of his games! He's got the girls inside that maze!" I cried out loud. Jou made a low noise that sounded really threatening, and Kaiba wheeled and punched a wall. His knuckles were bleeding when he turned back to us, but he didn't seem to notice. I turned my attention back to the screens. I noticed that at the same exact second, all three girls flinched and seemed to get cut another time. " They get cut every minute or so, somehow." I muttered.  
  
" What a lunatic! I'm gonna kill him when I get a hold of him!" Honda growled.  
  
" There's got to be a way to get them through this maze. Kaiba, you've got the maze on that paper, right?" I asked of Kaiba, who glanced at the paper in his hands.  
  
" Yeah, and I know what you're thinking. Guiding them through the maze is a great idea, but how do we tell them which way to go?" he asked me.  
  
" I was hoping maybe you'd have an idea." I grumbled.  
  
I could try to make a soul connection with Himeko. Yami volunteered. I grinned widely and relayed his offer to the others.  
  
" That would work for Himeko and Yuki, but what about the other girls?" Jou asked. I shook my head.  
  
" The only thing I can think of would be to have Yuki or Himeko, or whoever's in control, yell to them, but they might get apprehended or punished for that." I said.  
  
" Couldn't you have Yami try that soul connection thing with them?" Kaiba asked.  
  
" He could do it, but it would take a lot of time and energy that we just don't have. Himeko is easier because his soul is already bonded to hers." I explained. Kaiba nodded like he understood, but I don't think he did. " I just remembered. Anzu hates mazes. She's no good at them." I said suddenly, frowning mournfully. Kaiba glanced up at me, consumed by the computer again.  
  
" Maybe we can find some plans or something." He muttered, typing away like a madman. Yuki stumbled onto another screen. She was dragging her left leg dangerously. She paused, leaned against the wall, and inspected a long gash that ran the length of her left leg. Even on the surveillance screen, I could see her wince as she tried to bandage the worst of it with a strip she tore off of her silk wrap. Mai was also occupied, clutching her arm to her side in an attempt to close her own gaping wound and clot the blood. Anzu stumbled on, painfully blind to the trail of blood behind her. I winced.  
  
" There has to be some way to help them." Jou murmured. I looked up at him, standing silently behind me. Kaiba was carefully directing his attention to the computer. What he didn't know couldn't hurt him. Honda watched the screens from a little ways off, sitting on the small round table that the goons had sat at. Jou suddenly started busying himself by tying up the goons and stuffing them into a closet. I closed my eyes. I could almost hear Anzu calling out to me to help her. I glanced at the maze on the screens, then at the print off of it. Anzu seemed to be. about in the middle. In no time, I located her exact position. She was at a four way intersection. Take the one on your left, Anzu, your left. No, she took the middle one! No wait, she changed her mind. She was going with the left! I would have jumped for joy if I wasn't busy working ahead, trying to decide where Anzu needed to go next. But an annoying little thought kept plaguing my mind. She loves Yami better than me, I thought sadly.  
  
What? Yami asked me, having heard my thoughts.  
  
I really need to learn how to think quietly. I muttered, mostly to myself, but Yami heard anyway.  
  
I really don't think that's possible. The best solution is not to think at all. Yami told me. Now, what was that about Anzu? he pressed. Just as I could always get him to tell me anything, he could always get anything out of me.  
  
Nothing. I thought, but Yami was already tapping into my memory. Hey! Cut that out! I thought frantically. Too late.  
  
What is this about? Yami asked me, almost upset, or as close as Yami ever got to being upset.  
  
She does, okay?! I shrilled, watching Anzu run through another screen.  
  
No need to get upset, little guy. Yami soothed.  
  
Don't call me little. I growled.  
  
Sorry. Yami thought automatically. While we conversed, I planned and followed Anzu's progress through the maze. At the moment, she was backtracking. Listen, I've told you before, and I'll tell you again. I don't have any of those. feelings about her, all right? I don't. Yami assured me.  
  
You may not, I thought suspiciously. But she feels that way about you. It's like I don't even exist! I wailed mentally. Yami waited for me to finish.  
  
Would you feel better if I talked to her about it? he asked me.  
  
No! I'd feel worse! I thought frantically.  
  
Why? Yami asked, thoroughly confused.  
  
Because, then I'd be totally humiliated that I didn't have the guts to tell her that stuff myself! I'd look like a total chicken! I yelled, still outwardly silent. My outburst left Yami only more confused.  
  
You don't look like a chicken. he protested. I groaned.  
  
It's an expression, Yami. I thought in exasperation.  
  
Oh. Yami conceded. Just tell her. You'll feel better, even if she does reject you, and I don't think she will. he advised.  
  
Easy for you to say. You're the brave one. I told him grumpily.  
  
No, I'm not. You know how long it took me to face up to how I felt about. about. Yami thought angrily, his thoughts breaking as he thought about the girl he had loved.  
  
Mariah? I offered. I felt a wave of sadness from Yami.  
  
Yes. he agreed. It took me most of. that life to tell myself I. felt that way. That was just telling myself. I never even really told her. Yami thought, his thoughts frequently breaking. I saw his emotions so clearly right then. He felt so terrible about what he had to do that day so long ago, and he wanted so much to make it all go away. Yami sensed me looking into his deepest thoughts, but he didn't seem to care anymore. You see? These stupid feelings make you weak. I can't stand it. Yami said, his thoughts seething in anger.  
  
You loved her, didn't you? More than anything else? I asked him. It seemed like finally, Yami was ready to talk.  
  
Love? I suppose. Yami thought reluctantly. It was hard for him. I would have given anything to make sure she was safe and happy. Whether or not she felt the same way, I didn't care. It was all about making her happy. Yami thought.  
  
I feel that way about Anzu. I thought, directing our gaze to Anzu on the screen. She had paused to take a break, breathing hard. Even exhausted and bloody, she was beautiful.  
  
She looks so much like my Mariah. Yami thought absently. My attention was on him instantly. He recognized my suspicion. But she's not Mariah. She's still Anzu, and as long as you love her, little guy, she's yours. I sighed outwardly. Why did I doubt Yami, who had no reason to lie to me? Because, if I felt so strongly for Anzu, what was to stop Yami, whose heart had been broken from the loss of a girl that looked almost exactly like Anzu, from feeling that way too?  
  
*+*+*  
  
I gasped frantically, leaning against the wall. I conjured a picture of Yugi's face in my head for courage, swallowed the pain and blinked back the tears, and then ran on. Suddenly, the picture of Yugi became Yami, and then the hormones went rushing.  
  
" Stop it!" I cried out loud. Yami and Yugi, why did they become so confused in my mind? Yugi, who was so sweet and gentle, caring and wonderful, and Yami, who was so strong, brave, handsome, and dangerous. Both had qualities that drew me in, captured me, and their images became confused in my mind. Pain hazed my thinking. Blood was flowing out of me like a red river. I was growing tired. I blinked furiously. I wouldn't be drawn into the fatigue. I pictured Yugi again. " Help me!" I cried out again. Why was it so hard to decide, a part of me was wondering. I ignored that soft, sentimental part who felt the end coming.  
  
" You can make it, Anzu!" I heard Yugi call. I stopped running, ignoring the pain as another slash appeared across my shoulders. " Yugi?" I wondered out loud.  
  
*+*+*  
  
I was running like a madwoman. I couldn't believe this. Me, Mai, running through that lunatic Pegasus's sick maze? My legs were totally slashed.  
  
" This had better not scar." I muttered. I had nice legs. I didn't want them all scarred up. Suddenly, I screeched to halt. I tried to continue, but I had run up against some sort of glass. I pressed my hands against it. There was nothing there, but it felt as though I was pushing against a solid wall. " I must be too close to Anzu." I muttered. I would have to wait till she moved. I kept my hand pressed against the wall, waiting for some give. I wondered where Jou was, and if he was okay. Another slash appeared on my left arm and I winced. " Hurry, Anzu." I muttered.  
  
*+*+*  
  
" Oof!" I cried out, slamming into something very hard, very solid, and very invisible. " Alright, that hurt." I muttered, another gash slicing across the width of my thigh. I groaned, stood up and pushed against the barrier. I guessed I had gotten too close to one of the other girls. I pushed again. " Hurry up!" I demanded, but the barrier didn't give. I considered turning back, but something told me not to. Himeko still slept deeply within me. I had every intention of giving her the ultimate gripe- out of all time when she woke up. I worried briefly over Seto, then tried to push him from my mind. Wherever he was, he could take care of himself. Or so I hoped.  
  
*+*+*  
  
" Anzu, keep moving!" Yugi's voice yelled at me. I started and ran a few more step and then stopped. There was nothing else the voice seemed to want to say. How could it be Yugi, I wondered, running on. I came to an intersection.  
  
" Left, Anzu." Yami's voice now. I followed it, wondering all the while how I could be hearing either Yami or Yugi. There! The end of the maze! I broke into a full run. I could make it, I had to make it, or I'd never see Yugi. Yami. Yugi. ever again. My legs, suddenly unbelievably weak, fell out from under me. I fell stomach first onto the floor, my bare stomach scraping against the concrete. I cried out in pain as another slash ran down the length of my back on top of the pain from falling. I was so tired. It would be so easy just to give up right now.  
  
*+*+*  
  
" No, Anzu! Get up!" I cried at the screen, even though I knew she couldn't hear me. I felt Jou standing behind me, watching as well. Even Kaiba had turned away from to computer to watch. Anzu made a small movement, but remained on the floor. She looked so weak. " Please get up, Anzu." I begged.  
  
" Look, the other girls! They've stopped!" Honda called.  
  
" I bet Pegasus has some kind of magic keeping them from getting too close to one another. So they can't group up and work together." Kaiba said thoughtfully. I followed his gaze to Yuki, who had slumped into a sitting position. Yami jerked in me.  
  
" Yuki looks like she's in trouble." Honda noted. Kaiba stood, but I only smiled at Honda.  
  
" You know, Honda, I've noticed you've been acting very concerned with Yuki lately, and I've seen you staring at her when you think no one's looking. Is there something you want to share?" I asked. Honda blushed avidly.  
  
" Um, no. Hey, shouldn't we be concentrating on the girls?" he asked. Jou laughed, but I noticed Kaiba giving Honda a dirty glare.  
  
Hmm. It appears that we have two developing rivals. Yami noted. I laughed. My laughter was cut short when I caught sight of Anzu, still laying where she had fallen.  
  
" Get up, please get up." I begged. She couldn't die, not like this! She just couldn't.  
  
Just like Mariah. Yami thought sadly.  
  
" No!" I cried, so upset I made the cry verbally. " Get up!" I yelled.  
  
*+*+*  
  
" Get up!" Yugi yelled at me. I raised my head to look for him through pain hazed eyes. Where was he? Yugi? Or was it Yami? Yami, Yugi, Yami, Yugi. They both began to swirl together into the same guy. " Anzu! Get up! You have to get up! The other girls need you to move!" Yugi yelled at me.  
  
" I can't." I muttered, lowering my head back to the floor.  
  
*+*+*  
  
" I can't." Anzu's soft voice murmured to me. She was so weak.  
  
Don't let her die! Yami cried in my head.  
  
I won't. I promised. " Anzu, please! They'll die if you don't move! Get up now!"  
  
Wait. How can we be hearing her? Yami thought suddenly. I ignored him.  
  
*+*+*  
  
" Get up now!" Yugi barked at me. I made a pathetic attempt to raise myself. " That's right. Good, Anzu. Keep going." Yugi encouraged. It felt like he was right behind me. I even looked to check, but he wasn't there. I managed to get to my feet and stumble a few painstaking steps.  
  
" Yugi." I muttered, desperate to hear his voice again. There was no confusion. Just Yugi.  
  
*+*+*  
  
I heard my name from Anzu's lips. So soft and loving. I couldn't believe my ears.  
  
How? Yami muttered, even as I felt the realization strike him. A soul connection. he murmured.  
  
" I'm with you, Anzu. Just keep going." I whispered to her. I didn't notice the silence around me.  
  
*+*+*  
  
" Just keep going." Yugi bade me.  
  
" Yes." I whispered back. I was so close. I was out! Out of the damned maze! Instantly, all the pain and cuts vanished. I was still exhausted, but all the blood and wounds were gone! I was out! " Thank you, Yugi." I murmured, slipping into blissful sleep.  
  
*+*+*  
  
" Yes! She did it! She did it!" Jou cried out in happiness, jumping up and down in joy. " And here comes Mai! Yuki's right behind her!" Jou yelled. Honda whooped and joined Jou in a victory dance.  
  
" Thank you, Yugi." I heard Anzu whisper to me, then felt her slip away from me.  
  
She's just asleep. You had a soul connection with her. Yami told me.  
  
Did I? I didn't even notice. I responded.  
  
You've grown powerful, my little friend. Soon you'll be as strong as me, if not stronger. Yami told me.  
  
Nah, that'll never happen. I assured him. And don't call me little. I added good-naturedly.  
  
" Hey, look! All the cuts disappear as soon as they get out of the maze!" Kaiba cried as Mai walked out and ran over to Anzu. Yuki was a few moments behind her.  
  
" Oh, great." Honda groaned as Pegasus appeared on the screen with the girls. I wished I could hear what words were exchanged.  
  
" Well, I have some bad news." Kaiba said, earning more groans. Yami even added his two cents mentally. " It seems like this maze crap was only the first of three tests. From what I've read, the next thing will be harder than this one, and the third will be even harder than that one." He explained. Before I could respond, a group of goons charged into the room.  
  
" Hey, how did you get out of your cell?" one asked.  
  
" Oh shit!" Jou cried. I could sympathize with the feeling. 


	8. Stand Beside Me

Yuki  
  
By: Rogue Fox  
  
Part Eight. Stand Beside Me  
  
A/N: Hey, everyone. First off, many thanks to all the great reviewers! It's nice to know that something I do is appreciated. I just want to let you all know that I do a Duel in this fic. I don't go into huge detail because I'm not real good at portraying Duels, and this is not a fic about dueling. So there! That said, I would like to add that if I mess anything up, please don't flame me!!! Positive reviews and suggestions are very welcome. Also, I'm just letting you know, that we're nearing the end of this series, so if you want a sequel, let me know! I have a few ideas, and you'll probably want it anyway. Well, arigato and sayonara! Enjoy the story, and don't forget to review!  
  
  
  
I ran up to Anzu, seeing her on the ground.  
  
" Anzu! Are you okay?" I asked her shrilly. She didn't respond, which was quite understandable since she was unconscious. I sat with her for a few minutes before Yuki came tumbling out of the maze behind me. As they had with me, all her cuts and blood vanished immediately. She jogged over to join us.  
  
" Anzu!" she cried out as I had. " Is she okay?" she asked me, a tinge of fear in her voice. I sighed, checked Anzu's pulse and nodded.  
  
" Yeah, I think so. I think she's just unconscious." I told her. Yuki nodded her agreement and stood to her full height. She was shorter than me, but still tall enough to look imposing if she ever took it to her mind that she wanted to. I heard steps on the concrete floor and snapped my head up to see who approached us. A small part of my mind hoped beyond hope that it was Jou, but I dismissed that thought. It was Pegasus.  
  
" You!" I screeched at him. I fumed and took on my PO'ed stance. " You slimy, despicable bastard! What do you want now?! How dare you even come near us after what you put us through?! This had better be good, you awful loony, or I swear I'll make you despise the day you were born!" I screamed at him. I didn't even notice that I had woken Anzu up or that Yuki had plugged her ears as I hit the high octaves. Pegasus just smiled at me, through my tirade. That only made me madder.  
  
" I'm here to congratulate you ladies on your completion of the maze. Good job." He said calmly, as though I had greeted him perfectly normal and polite. I made a shrill noise in the back of my throat to indicate my intense agitation. Anzu stood shakily and I paused to make sure she was okay.  
  
" I'm fine, I think." She told me. I immediately turned back to Pegasus.  
  
" So what do want with us now?" I asked. I still refused to address him by his name. He was still "that bastard" in my book.  
  
" I want you to run. My men will be after you in exactly thirty seconds and if you can make it out of here without getting caught, you're home free." Pegasus explained. All three of us stared at him.  
  
" You're even crazier than I thought." I told him matter-of-factly. Pegasus laughed.  
  
" You may be right. You'd better start running." He told us, tapping his watch.  
  
" What about the guys?" Anzu asked, blurting the words out.  
  
" You'll find them waiting for you if you make it out." He told us, tapping his watch again. I grabbed Anzu's arm and dragged her with me, Yuki running after us. Anzu got her feet beneath her after a few minutes and ran with us. I rounded a corner, running flat out.  
  
" This is insane! I thought that bastard wanted to keep us here!" I shouted, gasping through my words as I ran on, desperate to put more distance between me and those guards.  
  
" I thought so too! There has to be something more to this!" Anzu shouted back.  
  
" I think there is." Yuki said quietly. I stopped at a four-way intersection and looked around myself.  
  
" That one looks as good as any." I said, starting to run again. Anzu and Yuki followed behind me. To tell the truth, I was exalted with the thought of being able to escape, and see Jou again. I was worried about him, even though I'd never admit that to Yuki or Anzu.  
  
" Hey, I think there's someone following us." Yuki said after a few minutes.  
  
" Oh, great! Those goons can run fast!" Anzu cried, picking up her pace. I speeded up as well.  
  
" Mai!" I swear I heard Jou's voice calling to me. I started to stop, but Yuki gave me savage shove. I started and kept running.  
  
" I thought I heard Jou!" I shouted at her.  
  
" Just keep running!" she shouted back, turning to glare at me. I had never seen her act so angry. Startled, I did as she told me. Momentarily, I became aware of footsteps behind us.  
  
" Mai!" Jou's voice again!  
  
" Keep running! Don't stop!" Yuki shouted, her eyes closed tightly and her hands clamped over her ears. I wondered why briefly, then turned my attention to running as fast as I could. Anzu was starting to drag behind us, and I was rapidly running out of strength. Yuki pulled ahead of me a few steps, fear of whatever or whoever was behind us driving her onward.  
  
" Ah!" Anzu screamed suddenly. Almost immediately afterward, a hand clamped on my right arm. I opened my mouth to scream as something shot past me and grabbed Yuki, hauling her to a stop. I clamped my eyes shut and screamed as loud as I could. Whoever had my arm now grabbed my shoulders and shook me.  
  
" Mai! Mai, it's me! Mai, shut up, will you?!" a voice yelled at me. I stopped and opened my eyes.  
  
" Jou?" I asked, staring up into those brown eyes I knew so well in confusion and bewilderment.  
  
" It's me. Who'd you think I was?" Jou asked me, smiling down at me. I thought for an instant that something was off about him, but I shoved that thought away and threw myself into his grasp, hiding my face against his chest.  
  
" Jou! I thought I'd never see you again!" I cried into his chest. I could hear the smile on his voice.  
  
" Nah, nothing could keep me away." He told me. I looked around us to where Anzu was almost choking a guy I decided must be Yami, judging by the height, and Yuki staring almost suspiciously up at Kaiba.  
  
" You guys really scared us! We thought you were Pegasus's goons!" Anzu cried. Yuki still stared at Kaiba, as though she were trying to figure something out.  
  
" What's the matter, Yuki? It's me. It's Seto." Kaiba said, his voice soothing like I had never heard him talk before.  
  
" Liar." Yuki said suddenly. I stared at her.  
  
" What's the matter with you, girl?" I asked, pulling away from Jou to go to her. To my surprise, Jou grabbed my arm. I turned back to him to give him a questioning look.  
  
" Yes, what is the matter with you?" Kaiba asked. To me, he sounded genuinely concerned and almost hurt.  
  
" You can't be Seto. I don't know you." Yuki said, suddenly heaving her body away from Kaiba. Unfortunately for her, he had a good grip on her arm.  
  
" Yuki, what are you talking about?" Anzu asked, pulling away from Yami, who stepped up in front of her. " Hey, what's the big idea, Yami?" she asked him.  
  
" Let me go!" Yuki screamed. Kaiba didn't listen to her.  
  
" Jou, what's wrong? Why won't you let go of my arm?" I asked Jou. Surely there was a good reason for him acting like this.  
  
" I'm. just so glad you're safe." Jou said. I frowned. That didn't sound like something Jou would say.  
  
" Let go of me!" Yuki screamed again, twisting her arm ferociously.  
  
" Stop this, Yuki! It's me!" Kaiba yelled back, yanking Yuki's arm violently. Yuki immediately cried out in pain and fell obediently beside him.  
  
" You can't be Seto! Seto would never hurt me! I don't know who you people are, but leave us alone!" Yuki cried out. Kaiba gave her arm another yank.  
  
" Hey, stop that, Kaiba!" Anzu yelled, trying to step around Yami and go to Yuki's defense. Yami just grabbed her and pulled her back.  
  
" Ow! Jou, you're hurting my arm! Let go!" I cried.  
  
" I'm sorry, Mai. I can't. I have to make sure you come with me. We need to take you three somewhere." Jou told me. His voice was soothing and reasonable. I saw no reason not to believe him.  
  
" Uh, okay." I told him.  
  
" No! I don't wanna go!" Yuki screamed, pulling ferociously again. Kaiba just pulled her back, hard enough to make her cry out again. Anzu seemed to be having her doubts.  
  
" I want to talk to Yugi. Now." She told Yami. Yami just smiled that strange half-smile I had seen before. When he had a devious plan and he knew it.  
  
" Yugi. can't talk at the moment. He's very tired." Yami explained. Anzu eyed him suspiciously.  
  
" Why is he tired?" she asked.  
  
" Enough questions. It's time to go." Kaiba announced walking back the way we had come, dragging Yuki, who was still fighting him, along. I followed Jou willingly enough and Anzu came behind Yami, every now and then giving her arm a yank to try to remove it from his grip.  
  
" So, how did you guys find us?" I asked after a few awkward moments of silence. Why didn't I feel comfortable around Jou like I usually did, safe and happy? Was it our surroundings? Yeah, I thought, that must be it. It's this place. It's making us all edgy.  
  
" We found a security room. Kaiba hacked into the computers and printed out a map of this place, then we used the surveillance system to locate you." Yami explained. Suspicion roused in me. Yami was a really smart guy, but he hated computers and most modern technology. I knew that. He wouldn't have had the slightest clue about how Kaiba had gone about locating us, even if Yugi did explain it to him, which wasn't possible since he had already told us that Yugi was too tired to control his own body. Anzu seemed to be thinking the same things, because she flashed me a questioning look. We both glanced at Yuki who gave us a look of pleading and pulled against Kaiba's grip all the harder.  
  
" Um, where are you taking us?" Anzu asked.  
  
" A safe place." Jou responded. I couldn't help but notice the malicious look that flashed across his face for a moment.  
  
" Can you let go of my arm?" I asked him.  
  
" No." was his simple response. That's when I got my first suspicion that Yuki was already acting on. For a moment, I thought that this guy couldn't be Jou. Jou would never. Well, I thought, he's under a lot of stress. I'm sure he has a good reason for all of this. I reasoned to myself. My logic made perfect sense.  
  
After a few moments of rough yanks, Yuki's cries, and Anzu's increasingly frantic questioning, we were hauled into a room. My eyes immediately swept over the entire room, and were drawn to the Duel arena in the middle. I intended to ask, but I was interrupted.  
  
" Honestly, ladies. I thought you'd get farther than that." Pegasus said. I turned to him and gave him a vicious snarl. Yuki paused a moment, stared at him, then looked at Kaiba, then began to yank and pull away from him, throwing her weight into the effort. It didn't really look like Kaiba even noticed.  
  
" Alright, we brought them." Yami said, giving Anzu a jerk so that she stumbled in front of him.  
  
" What?!" I asked in panic as Yuki and I were tossed violently to join Anzu. Kaiba appeared to be rather angry with Yuki's actions, so he gave her a particularly vicious jerk that sent her rolling head over heels. She landed a little in front of Anzu and I, looking up at Pegasus with a mixture of hate and fear in her eyes.  
  
" That's for being such a pain." Kaiba told Yuki. For a moment, I think Yuki actually thought he was Kaiba and looked at him in shock and hurt, then her resolve from earlier came back. She promptly told him to shut up, using a few words that I didn't think Yuki even knew. Anzu and I stared at her.  
  
" What?" she asked us. " I went to an American public school. I know how to sling BS." She said. She then turned her attention to Kaiba again. " If you open your mouth one more time, I'll deprive you of your manhood, got it?" she told him. Kaiba merely smiled at her, but didn't say anything.  
  
" Well, ladies, I would like to welcome you to test number two. Torn Hearts, as I've taken to calling it." Pegasus informed us. " The three of you will choose one of your number to Duel against one of the young men here. Winner and his or her group live. Loser and their group dies. It's that simple." Pegasus told us, gesturing to the guys. " The match-ups are as follows; if Anzu is your chosen champion, she will Duel little Yugi and his older self. Yuki would go against Kaiba, and Mai would be put against Jounouchi." Pegasus explained. In a few minutes, us girls were grouped together out of ear shot of Pegasus and the guys.  
  
" This can't be happening! I thought the guys were on our side!" Anzu said in a whisper.  
  
" They are. Those aren't our guys. They're imposters." Yuki informed us coolly.  
  
" Okay, that's definitely good news." I said, before Anzu could ask how Yuki knew. There wasn't time for questions. " We have to choose someone to duel. And we'd better do it quick, regardless of whether those guys are for real or not." I said.  
  
" I can't." Yuki protested quickly. " I didn't even know what this game was until two weeks ago! You can't actually expect me to play it, especially against him." She told us, gesturing to Kaiba.  
  
" Me? Against Yami and Yugi? They never lose and I don't even rank as a Duelist!" Anzu cried quietly.  
  
" Then that leaves me." I said, flashing the guy who looked so much like Jou a somewhat scared look.  
  
" Jou beat you once, he can do it again." Anzu protested.  
  
" Then what do you suggest we do, Anzu? We don't have a choice. And besides, if Yuki is right, that isn't really Jou. And Jou is the only person who ever beat me fairly, so that means I can beat him." I said, feigning confidence I actually lacked for their benefit. Yuki nodded at my logic, but Anzu looked doubtful. I thought that maybe she still didn't trust me.  
  
" I guess it's our only choice." She said reluctantly.  
  
" What? You don't think I can do it?" I asked, instantly enraged.  
  
" I think you can do it!" Anzu protested sharply.  
  
" Then how about showing a little faith? Isn't that your favorite card? The Magician of Faith?" I taunted. " Or is it that you don't trust me? That's it, isn't it? It's been a whole year and you still don't think I'm worthy of your trust. You still think I'll stab you in the back the first chance I get!" I accused her. Anzu immediately flared.  
  
" I do so trust you!" she protested, but her face told me otherwise. Somewhere deep inside me, I was truly hurt. Another part of me was upset. What if Anzu was right? What if I really wasn't worthy of her trust, or Yuki's or Honda's or. Jou's? I blinked back tears. I would not show any weakness now!  
  
" I'm going to Duel Jou. And I will win." I told Anzu quietly, then turned back to Pegasus. " Did you hear that? I'll Duel! And I'm gonna win!" I yelled to him. But that little part of me was still hurt, still scared and still upset. Was Anzu right? No, she couldn't be. I'd prove her wrong. I'd prove to her that I was worthy! I'd prove to them all that I was worthy! And then maybe Jou. Maybe he might love me the way I loved him. Since I'd be worthy then. I wanted their friendship. More than I had ever wanted anything before. But as much as I wanted Anzu and Yuki and all the rest to see me as their friend, I wanted Jou to love me more. So much, this Duel was worth all the risk, just for that reward. And then, what if he really was Jou? I wouldn't stand a chance! Jou knew how to beat me. I swallowed all my doubts, fears, hopes, and dreams, as Yuki, Anzu and I followed one of Pegasus's guards into a room where there was every single Duel Monsters card imaginable. Here, I was to assemble my deck, with the help of Yuki and Anzu. Anzu and I were both forced to swallow our pride and put our earlier argument aside for the moment. I immediately picked out my cards of choice, assembling my deck easily.  
  
" Here, Mai. Take these. You can't have all the same types of monsters." Anzu said, handing me some cards she had picked out herself.  
  
" Let's see. Silver Bow and Arrow, Waboku, Magician of Faith, and. Shining Friendship?" I asked, looking up at her in question. She just shrugged.  
  
" You might need it. It saved me, remember?" she said.  
  
" Yeah, I do." I agreed, giving her a true smile. Maybe Anzu and I might someday become real friends.  
  
" Hey I found some cool ones! Are these okay?" Yuki asked, showing us some cards of her own.  
  
" Well, Gyakutenno Megami, Card Destruction, Change of Heart, Dark Hole." I glanced up at Yuki.  
  
" I'm still new at this, but I like that one's effect. It's pretty good. It destroys all monsters on the field. It might come in handy." She said by way of explanation. I looked back to the cards in my hand.  
  
" Dark Magician, Sword of Dark Destruction, Book of Secret Arts, and Yami?" I asked.  
  
" I think if you put all those together you can make that Dark Magician really strong." Yuki said. I smiled at Yuki, who looked so eager to help.  
  
" Thanks, both of you." I said, shuffling all of the cards into my deck. I hoped they would help me.  
  
We walked out of the room and I stepped up to the Dueling platform. Jou took his place at the other end.  
  
" Ready?" he asked me.  
  
" Yeah. Let's go." I said, drawing my five cards. My hand consisted of Harpy Lady, Silver Bow and Arrow, Cyber Shield, Elegant Egotist, and the Harpy Feather Duster. I glanced across the arena at Jou, who was considering his move. Then I glanced back at Anzu and Yuki, partly for reassurance, partly just to know their position. Yuki had placed her total and complete faith in me, and seemed utterly convinced I could do this. I couldn't read Anzu's face. Everything was riding on this duel, our lives, our souls, our hopes, our dreams, everything I had learned to value. And if I won, I might win a prize that was so much better than all the money and luxuries I had Dueled for before. I might win friends and love, something so much better. I had to win. Regardless of who I was facing, I had to win. I just had to.  
  
*+*+*  
  
" Hey, how did you get out of your cell?" a goon yelled at us. " Oh, shit!" I cried, making a mad dash to get around the table in the middle of the room, thus putting it between me and a particularly large goon. Kaiba jumped and grabbed the chair he had previously been sitting at and tossed it clear across the room. A fight quickly broke out, and the odds, I saw immediately, were against us. However, somehow, Honda managed to grab a chair and started swinging it like a bat. Goons started going down like sacks of potatoes as a consequence.  
  
It was a few minutes before we managed to take them all out. It was a bare thing, all the same. I was limping severely and Kaiba was rummaging through a small refrigerator for some ice to put on Honda's head. I worried a little about Honda. He had taken quite a few bumps to the head lately and I was worried that it might do some serious damage.  
  
" As far as I can tell, it's just a bump." Kaiba said, shrugging helplessly. Honda held the ice pack to his head and groaned. " I mean, his eyes aren't dilated or anything like that, so I guess he'll be okay. But all the same, don't go to sleep, Honda." Kaiba finished, giving Honda a serious look. Honda smiled up at him from the chair he was sitting in.  
  
" Aw, Kaiba. I didn't know you cared." He said sentimentally. Yugi laughed, but the laughter was short lived.  
  
" Up until recently, I didn't." Kaiba told Honda, then shoved past me to investigate the surveillance screens.  
  
" The girls seem to have disappeared." Yugi said, following Kaiba's gaze. I came up behind them, hoping beyond hope to spot Mai somewhere among the black and white images.  
  
" Either that, or they started moving really fast." I suggested darkly.  
  
" You don't think they got a break and tried to escape?" Honda asked me.  
  
" Maybe." I said, shrugging. " It's a possibility. With those three, you never know."  
  
" I'm not sure any of them would have been too eager to run for it without us. They're all pretty stubborn." Yugi said doubtfully. Then he crinkled his face up. " Or is that too arrogant of us to assume?" he asked. I laughed.  
  
" I don't think it's too arrogant." I told him. " Who'd want to leave us behind?" I added jokingly.  
  
" If they thought it was their only chance, they might." Honda said.  
  
" Nah, if I know Mai, she'd stay around to try to inflict some damage on Pegasus. She'd be too keen on revenge to run off." I said confidently.  
  
" Yuki would be far too interested in finding her brothers to bolt." Kaiba said, with as much confidence as I had. " Besides, I don't think Pegasus would let them escape. This next game he has sounds like he'll be having a jolly old time." Kaiba added, his face twisting into a sour grimace.  
  
" What's the test?" Honda asked, still holding the ice pack Kaiba had made him to his head. I sat in another chair and inspected my leg. There was going to be a nasty bruise, but I didn't think it was too serious.  
  
" That, I don't know. I just know he calls it 'Torn Hearts.' That sounds like a lot of fun, doesn't it?" Kaiba asked in response. Honda grimaced, and I mimicked the expression. Yugi considered carefully.  
  
" I don't like the sound of that." He said finally.  
  
" No more than the rest of us." I assured him.  
  
" Whatever the test, we need to figure out how to help the girls." Kaiba said, pacing back and forth across the room, pausing to give one of the fallen goons a vicious kick. " He was waking up." He told us in excuse. I did recognize that particular goon as the one that had given Kaiba the nice black eye he was developing. I chose not to say anything and went back to studying the surveillance screens.  
  
*+*+*  
  
I winced as my life points dwindled down to 200. Jou had slammed my Harpy Lady before I could use the Elegant Egotist on her. And the next Harpy Lady I played. He had a powerful line-up on the field, and it had me worried. Too many big, powerful cards. They were knocking out my Harpies before I could juice them up. I glanced down at my hand. I still had Silver Bow and Arrow, I had drawn Shining Friendship, but I was afraid to play it, the Dark Magician, and the Book of Secret Arts. Elegant Egotist was face down on the field, and a D-Spell had gotten my Cyber Shield. It was my turn to draw. I drew, and peeked, almost afraid to look.  
  
" Wait, this is the card that Yuki gave me." I muttered. Dark Hole, destroys all monsters on the field. If I played that, and then Dark Magician and the Book of Secret Arts. I might win! But then, if I beat Jou, he would die. That was the deal. I couldn't just let Jou die! But if I lost, me and the other girls would die. And they were counting on me to win. I looked across the field at him. There has to be a way to make sure he's not Jou, I thought. He looked so much like Jou. He shouldn't have been facing me, not like this. Wait, I thought suddenly, that's it!  
  
" Hey, Jou!" I called. Jou looked up at me questioningly. " Our quote!" I cried. He looked at me in confusion.  
  
" What?" he asked.  
  
" Tell me our quote!" I called back.  
  
" What quote?" he asked. I laughed.  
  
" You're not Jou. Jou knows our quote. Jou wouldn't face me. He'd stand beside me." I said. I had all the proof I needed. " I play the Dark Hole." I said.  
  
" What!" Jou cried. " You told me she didn't have any cards like that!" he yelled at Pegasus, who just looked bewildered.  
  
" I made a few changes." I said.  
  
" All right!" Yuki cried, pumping her arms victoriously.  
  
" I knew you could do it!" Anzu agreed.  
  
" How many times have I told you that your brainless cheerleading doesn't help?" I told Anzu, even though my smile must have told her of my gratitude. As much as I hated to admit it, I needed her acceptance. I needed it like I needed air to breathe. " Then," I continued, talking to the Jou-look-alike again. " I play the Dark Magician, and a card face down. Beat that!" I said, victory in my grasp. I had laid the Book of Secret Arts face down because I wanted him to think that he could still beat me and thus lay a monster in attack mode, so I could take out his life points, which I had previously damaged.  
  
" That doesn't bother me." The imposter told me, drawing from his deck. He glanced at the card then threw it down. " I play the Red Eyes Black Dragon! And I power it up with Dragon Claws!" He informed me. That powered up dragon was enough to toast me. That is, if I didn't have the Book of Secret Arts. " And I attack." Imposter told em.  
  
" That's fine. But I have the card face down. It's Book of Secret Arts." I said. Imposter made the appropriate angry noises. I glanced down to where Anzu and Yuki were smiling up at me. " Thanks!" I told them triumphantly. " That doesn't kill your dragon, but it's stuck in attack mode." I said out loud to the imposter. I drew my card, which happened to be Sword of Dark Destruction. I naturally equipped that to Dark Magician and made my attack, sending his life points to zero. I made a few fake bows. " Thank you, thank you. No flash photography, please. For signed pictures, please consult my agent." I said humorously. Anzu and Yuki clapped and cheered.  
  
" Ah, I should have expected a Duelist of your caliber to strike back with such force, Mai." Pegasus said, adding his own claps. When Yuki and Anzu saw they were clapping with Pegasus, they stopped. I stepped down from the Dueling Arena and stood with my friends. My friends. That sounded really good. And I felt that I had earned their friendship, which made victory taste all the sweeter. Pegasus approached us.  
  
" So what do you want now?" I asked.  
  
" Well, I will give the young men one last chance at survival." Pegasus said. The imposters perked up from their slumped and defeated positions. " All they must do is kill you, and their survival will be insured." Pegasus informed us. We immediately cringed. Imposter Yami was the smallest, but tough stuff to deal with. I knew immediately. I couldn't stand up to any of those guys and hope to walk away from it. This wasn't going to be like fight Jou, who had never had any reason to hurt me and never would really do so. This imposter was not held back. He would kill me, I could tell by the malicious joy on his face. And I didn't have a single prayer to stop him. Yuki leaped to her left frantically, dodging a punch that would have been devastating, had it hit, from Kaiba. I had gotten a few hints that Yuki was a trained fighter and physically fit, but I knew that this Kaiba imposter was stronger. Yuki knew too. Anzu ran past me, Imposter Yami hot on her tail. I guessed she didn't want to hang around to find out if this guy had the same powers as Yami. I certainly didn't, and I made that clear by leaping away from him as he passed. Imposter Jou closed in on me, and I found a wall behind me. I was cornered, and there wasn't a hope in the world left for me, or my friends.  
  
*+*+*  
  
" There! I see them!" I cried, pointing to a monitor where I had spotted all three girls. They were standing together, obviously happy about something. Anzu and Yuki seemed to be cheering at Mai. They stopped cheering as Pegasus stepped on the screen.  
  
" Why does it seem like whenever those three have something to be happy about, he shows up?" Honda asked. I shrugged, wishing I could hear what they said. Pegasus walked away from the girls, who were all watching something else apprehensively, something getting closer, almost on the screen.  
  
" Hey, that's me!" I cried, gesturing to my look-alike as he stepped toward Mai. Mai backed away from him and up against a wall.  
  
" Hey, you jerk, leave Yuki alone!" Kaiba cried. I took my eyes off Mai for a second to see Yuki on another screen, engaged in a battle of the fists with Kaiba's copy. She was losing, and spent most of her time running and dodging.  
  
" Quit chasing Anzu!" Yugi cried, and I spared a glance at the screen he was looking at. Anzu was running away from someone I thought must be Yami, except couldn't be cause Yugi was right here and you couldn't find the one without the other. I directed my attention back to Mai. She leaped past my copy and scrambled to help Yuki, but my copy knocked her down.  
  
" Doesn't he know it's not nice to push girls?" I growled.  
  
" Or hit them?" Honda agreed, his attention on Yuki. I had thought for a long time that Honda might be developing a crush on Yuki. I didn't worry too much about it, since my buddy was a total romantic and often was falling for girls. But I did have to admit, he seemed to have fallen pretty hard this time.  
  
" Kaiba, the real one, where are they?" I asked.  
  
" Already on it. I think I can get us there." Kaiba said, his attention totally absorbed by the map print out.  
  
" How long?" Yugi asked, never taking his eyes off of Anzu. Mai rolled away from her attacker on the screen, barely avoiding him. He grabbed her by the neck.  
  
" Better be fast." I threatened. I needed something to direct my anger at, and Kaiba was there.  
  
" How fast can you run?" Kaiba countered. Apparently, he had a lot of anger he needed to vent as well.  
  
" Fast enough." I said, swelling my chest involuntary. Kaiba rose to the unspoken challenge, approaching me.  
  
" I think you need to lose the attitude." He told me. I should have backed down then, and I knew it, but I didn't.  
  
" And what if I don't want to?" I asked.  
  
" Then I'll make you." Kaiba told me calmly. Rage billowed up inside me and made my throat burn. Our chests were almost touching as we glared at each other. It was Yugi who butted in.  
  
" Okay, I totally understand the alpha male dominance thing, but now is not the time. Can you two fight it out later?" he asked. Kaiba and I immediately began to pretend the other wasn't there.  
  
" Fight what out? I'm fine." I said. I thought for a second Kaiba might start it up again, but he didn't.  
  
" I am, too. Let's go." He said, snatching up his papers and leading us out of the room. I almost asked why he had to lead. I really didn't want to deal with him right now. But I decided that some fights are better left not fought until later. Kaiba and I would settle our little dispute later, and it would probably end in fists. I was fine with that.  
  
It was a long time, running in those hallways. And all the while I was thinking about how Mai might be in trouble. How she might need me. My promise to her. How I wouldn't be able to keep it if I didn't get there soon. I promised her I would always be there beside her, protecting her and being there for her. But I wasn't there. I was breaking my promise, and I hate that. It made me angry.  
  
" It should be inside this door." Kaiba said, stopping finally. Yugi doubled over for a second, but he was up the next. I did a double take at him. It was Yami, not Yugi. Made sense to me. No offense to Yugi, but Yami was the tougher of the pair.  
  
" So what's. the plan?" Honda asked Kaiba, still breathing hard. I was still mad at Kaiba, and Honda treating him like the leader made me madder. I felt adrenaline pumping into my system with my anger.  
  
" There's no time for a plan. Let's go!" I cried, bursting through the door.  
  
" Jou, wait!" Yami cried, following me through.  
  
" Idiot." I heard Kaiba mutter. I wanted to turn around and discuss that term with him, but at that moment, I saw Mai. Her lips were turning blue as my copy, who I now thought really didn't look that much like me at all, strangled her.  
  
" Get your hands off Mai!" I bellowed, charging at my copy. He dropped Mai upon spotting me.  
  
" What the hell are you doing here?" he asked.  
  
" You said they were locked up!" Copy-Kaiba yelled at Pegasus.  
  
" You'd better get away from Mai." I said. Kaiba, Yami, and Honda all made similar threats. I did note that Honda teamed with Kaiba to go to Yuki's rescue.  
  
" Jou!" Mai gasped, her hands to her neck as she tried to breathe correctly. " Where have you been?" she asked.  
  
" We were a little busy trying to find you." I said, my eyes locked on my copy. We circled each other, both waiting for the other to lunge first.  
  
" Well, you sure took your sweet time!" Mai said. I figured she was probably glaring at me, but I didn't dare take my eyes off my opponent.  
  
" Mai, can we talk about this later?" I asked. The next instant, I dove. It was a mad scramble of a fight. I distantly imagined that my copy and I were enveloped in one of those cartoon dust clouds. If the situation hadn't been so serious, I might have laughed. His foot found my jaw in a frantic kick, which I responded to with my own. I finally managed to stand, pulling my opponent with me and tossing him away from me. I heard his head crack on the concrete floor, but amazingly, he stood up. " My God, what are these guys made of?" I asked no one.  
  
" That's what I'd like to know. Dark Oblivion doesn't seem to affect them." Yami said, shooting past me in an attempt to give himself more space. Blood ran down the side of my copy's face, and he grinned at me wildly.  
  
" We're made of sugar and spice and everything nice." He told me. His voice sounded sort of like mine, but I didn't think it was enough to think he was me.  
  
" Bull shit." I said. Mai jumped out of the way as my copy leapt at her, but I grabbed him around the shoulders. A struggle started between us. I don't know exactly what happened, but I remember suddenly hearing a loud snap as his head twisted too far to the side. He fell down as I let go of him, his body falling in a sick, unnatural twist. I stared at him. " I. I broke his neck." I muttered. Mai walked up to me. I felt her snuggle up against me, and I looked at her in bewilderment. I had killed for her. I had killed. " I killed him." I said, reality sinking in. I remembered what I had seen about Yami, about how Yami had had to kill the woman he loved. About how Nuru, my past self, had died trying to avenge his love. I had never even faced up to how I felt about Mai, and yet I had killed for her. It was so easy. I didn't even think about it. It just sort of happened. I don't know how the others finished their fights, and they never did tell me. I didn't want to know. I just remember Honda's hand on my shoulder. " I just murdered a man." I told them.  
  
" We all did." Kaiba said quietly. My anger at him was gone. Replaced by a deep sympathy. I knew a friendship was forged between us in that moment. We had both killed. And we had killed to defend someone we loved. Neither of us would ever be the same. A deep friendship was born, one I would never doubt, ever again. Mai snuggled closer to me and I wrapped my arm around her. At least I had killed for a girl worth ever bit of all the suffering I had endured, and whatever more was to come. All of us guys had killed, but I think Kaiba and I were affected by it the most. Maybe Yugi, but I couldn't see him.  
  
" Killing is always hard," Yami said. I got the feeling he was talking to Yugi as well. " And if you're a good person, it never gets easier. But some things just have to be done." He continued, shrugging helplessly. For the first time, I saw an emotion in those eyes of his other than smugness, anger, or shock. Sadness. There was sadness in him, and a lot of it. " If the cause is worthy, then whatever happens, it'll be all right." Yami promised, and then gave Yugi back his body. Yugi appeared really shaken up, but I thought he would be okay. Just like all of us.  
  
" Well, I don't know if having outside help counts, but I suppose I let this pass." Pegasus said. I shot him a glare that Kaiba and Yami would have been proud of. " I'll leave you all alone so you can have your reunion." Pegasus said, stepping out of earshot. The girls treated us all to enthusiastic hugs.  
  
" I have a question, Yuki." Anzu said after we were finished with initial greetings. " You knew right off the bat that that guy wasn't Kaiba. How did you know?" she asked. Yuki wrapped her arms around Kaiba's middle and smiled.  
  
" I know my Seto. And that wasn't him. There were little things. His eyes were the wrong shade of blue, his hair was too long, that kind of thing. Plus, he didn't feel right." Yuki said.  
  
" Feel right?" I asked. Even Kaiba looked at her questioningly.  
  
" Everyone has a certain feel to them." Yuki explained, looking up at Kaiba helplessly. " Everyone feels different to me. I don't mean like touching feel, I mean like. soul-feeling. Everyone's souls feel different. And that guy's soul wasn't Seto's. So I knew." Yuki said, shrugging.  
  
" How about you, Mai?" Anzu asked. I looked at Mai, waiting and wanting to hear her answer.  
  
" I was suspicious in the beginning, but I let my eyes deceive me. Then, later, I asked him to tell me what our quote was and he couldn't. So I knew he wasn't the real Jou." She said, smiling up at me. I smiled back. My little vixen, I thought, you're so clever.  
  
" You two have a quote?" Yuki asked. She was serious, but Anzu and Honda both had sly grins on their faces. I felt a blush creeping up my neck, but Mai stayed cool.  
  
" Yeah. It goes, 'Don't stand in front of me so I may not follow. Don't stand behind me so I may not lead. Instead, stand beside me, so we may face the future together.'" She said. I grinned, and whispered in her ear, so the others couldn't hear.  
  
" I promised. Did I keep my promise?" I asked her. She giggled and nodded.  
  
" Hey, what was that about?" Anzu asked.  
  
" Nothing." Mai and I said in unison. But, I remembered. *+*+* " Remind me why you took me to the library." Mai asked me, giving me a serious fish eye.  
  
" So we could get some study time in for that test in biology." I said, handing her a book on that subject. Mai made a face at it.  
  
" Ick. I hate biology. I don't wanna learn about a frog's guts." She wailed.  
  
" You have to, or you won't pass." I said.  
  
" Since when have you cared about passing?" she asked me.  
  
" Since I want to get into a good college. Even if you want to be a fashion designer, you need to pass high school to get into college." I told her. Mai sighed and opened her book. I sifted through the pile I had gathered, and ran across a book of quotes.  
  
" Hey, look at this. I wonder how this got in here?" I said, showing it to Mai. She grinned and scooted her chair next to me.  
  
" Let's read it! Come on, Jou, we need a break from studying." She said, leaning her head on my shoulder. I sighed. She sure knew how to get me to cave.  
  
" Fine, even though we've barely started." I said. We read through it until Mai found one she liked.  
  
" Oooh! Listen to this! 'Don't stand in front of me, so I may not follow. Don't stand behind me so I may not lead. Instead, stand beside me, so we may face the future together.'" Mai read.  
  
" You like that?" I asked.  
  
" I think it's sweet." Mai protested.  
  
" So do I." I agreed. Mai blushed a little, since she seemed to have thought I was teasing her. " If you like it so much, then it'll be our quote." I said. Mai smiled at me.  
  
" Our quote? Really?" she asked, as though I was giving her the most incredible present.  
  
" Yeah." I said, feeling myself starting to blush. " And I promise that I'll always stand beside you, no matter what. If you ever need me, no matter when or where, just call me." I said. Mai smiled wider.  
  
" That sounds like a song, Jou." She told me, then pecked me on the cheek. Hormones went flying a light speed, and my face must have put Rudolf the Red-Nosed Reindeer to shame. " Thanks." She whispered. *+*+* I sighed. Mai felt my lungs heave and looked up at me.  
  
" What's wrong?" she asked. The others were chatting, everyone relating their story, all around us. Mai was like my peace and quiet, even though I knew the terror wasn't over.  
  
" Nothing." I assured her, toying with a lock of her long hair absently, running it through my fingers as she snuggled against me. She leaned her head against my chest again. " Just remembering our quote and my promise." I told her. She smiled into my chest.  
  
" Tell me your promise." She demanded. I gave her a questioning look. " I just like hearing you say it." She explained, smiling coyly. She knew I couldn't resist that smile.  
  
" I promise I'll always stand beside you, no matter what. Through the good and the bad." I said.  
  
" You never say it the same twice." Mai noted.  
  
" I don't want to sound like a broken record." I told her.  
  
" Are you ever going to turn it into a song?" she asked.  
  
" Maybe someday. Who would sing it?" I asked in return.  
  
" We'd find somebody." Mai said decisively. At that moment Anzu ran up to us and grabbed Mai's hands.  
  
" Mai, I want to say I'm sorry about earlier. I should have trusted you more. You were right, I didn't have enough faith in you, and I should have." She said. I looked on, bewildered. Mai looked very pleased. " I'm sorry." Anzu said finally.  
  
" Well, I forgive you. What do you say we go shopping after we get out of here?" Mai said. Anzu grinned.  
  
" We can make Yuki buy a skirt." She said. Everyone laughed, except for Yuki who was confused (" What were you saying about me? Tell me, Anzu!"). And at that moment, Pegasus returned.  
  
" Oh, man. How'd I just know that you were going to show up and spoil this good feeling?" I asked. Pegasus grinned that maniac grin of his.  
  
" I just wanted to thank you all for managing to get yourselves all in one place for the final game." Pegasus said.  
  
" Great, this sounds like it'll be a real blast." Kaiba said, pulling Yuki close to him.  
  
" The next game is called Slice n' Dice Chess. I think you will find it. a one of a kind experience. Just know this; no one's heart is safe in this game. My servants will lead you to the game site." Pegasus said, turning and leaving the room. We were instantly surrounded by a group of goons.  
  
" No carrying! We can walk, you know." Anzu said, shying away from a goon and getting closer to Yugi. We were herded along like cattle, and that fact was commented on several times. Suddenly, Yuki went white as a sheet.  
  
" Yuki, what's the matter?" Yugi asked. Yuki glanced around herself, shook her head and made a dash to Kaiba. She seemed to think he would protect her from whatever she was afraid.  
  
" I know what Pegasus is going to do." She whispered. " And it's not good. At all." She added. And so, with terror in our hearts, we followed our escort to the next game, and possibly, our doom. 


	9. Flesh and Blood

Yuki  
  
By: Rogue Fox  
  
Part Nine. My Flesh and Blood  
  
My mind reeled and Himeko, who had finally woken up, was trying to bring me back from the brink of terror.  
  
Will you shut up? she asked me angrily. I had started blabbering again. Fortunately, I was doing it in my head. Although, the expression on my face must have been very odd. You do this when you get upset, don't you? Blabber like a madwoman? Himeko asked me, giving my soul a rough jerk. It's an odd experience, that much you can be sure of. Now what is the matter? Himeko asked me after I finally shut up.  
  
I dreamed about this. I dreamed about Pegasus's games. I said, physically huddling closer to Seto for comfort. He didn't know what I was so upset about, but he seemed to sense that now was not the time to ask questions. In the dream, I had felt brave. Now, I felt terror.  
  
Precognitive dreams. Himeko muttered. You're developing your powers very quickly. Too quickly. she told me, absently, absorbed by her own thoughts.  
  
What does that mean? I asked. Himeko seemed to snap out of her reverie.  
  
Nothing. Let me see the dreams in your memory. she said. I opened my memory to her willingly. I sensed she was focusing on my memories of Seto.  
  
Hey, what are you doing? I asked.  
  
Um, nothing. Himeko said, but actions speak louder than words, or, in this case, thoughts. She had been looking at my memories of Seto. I thought about prying, but I decided not to. If Himeko heard my thoughts, she didn't respond to them. She watched the dreams and then came back to full consciousness, and I returned to the physical world. Jou was making this job hard for the goons who were herding us by constantly trying to trip them. Honda caught on and indulged in it soon. I rolled my eyes and sighed at their immaturity, and Honda stopped immediately after. I wondered why, but decided not to ask. I did notice, however, that Himeko was snickering. I didn't ask about that either.  
  
The hallways that we were being led through were an endless maze of gray concrete and dark corners. I stayed close to Seto, who patted my head and gave my hand a comforting squeeze. I was thrilled to be back with him, but the dreams told me that this game coming up was going to make my happiness seem small and unimportant. I steeled my mind, reminding myself that I was here for my brothers. I would get them back, somehow. I was snapped from my thoughts when we were herded into a room with one small chessboards set up. Pegasus stood on the other side of the chessboard, smiling at us.  
  
" Hello, all." He said cheerfully. I thought about saying something very rude, and Himeko encouraged me to do it, but I didn't. I felt drained, physically, mentally, and emotionally.  
  
I don't know if I can take much more. I told Himeko. She instantly became more sympathetic and comforting.  
  
It's all right, girl. If it gets to be too much, I'll take over for you. Just hang in there. she told me. I concentrated on Pegasus. I needed to hear what he was saying.  
  
" I'm sure you are all beginning to feel the effects of physical and emotional drain. So, you will be happy to know that only one person will have to deal with this game. One of the ladies will have to play a game of chess with me. It's that simple." Pegasus explained.  
  
" Well, not me. I don't know a thing about chess." Mai announced.  
  
" I know how to play, but I've never won." Anzu said. Everyone turned and looked at me expectantly.  
  
" I'm okay." I said, letting my voice trail off.  
  
" Okay?" Seto echoed unbelievingly. " You beat me at it all the time. You're the perfect choice." He told me. I shrugged and stepped up to the board. If I hadn't been so exhausted, I might have put up more of a fight. But I just didn't have it in me any more.  
  
" Since you are going to play, I must warn you that any switching with your dark side will result in a penalty." Pegasus said. I nodded numbly. I was so tired.  
  
You okay, girl? Himeko asked me.  
  
No, but I don't think it matters very much. I thought back.  
  
It does to me. Himeko told me quietly. Instead of responding, I sat at the chessboard and glanced at my white pieces. Pegasus was black.  
  
" Ladies first." Pegasus said.  
  
" How very gentlemanly of you." I said sarcastically. And I started the game. I moved a the pawn diagonal to the right of my far right bishop one space. It wasn't a random choice, there was a method behind it, one I prayed Pegasus hadn't noticed. He moved a pawn in front of his knight on the left side of the board two spaces. No, it didn't seem like he was defending against my strategy. As a matter of fact, he had made is easier for me. But, even as tired as I was, I was no fool. I knew better than to trust Pegasus to anything. My stomach suddenly gave a lurch. I whimpered almost inaudibly. I was sure that none of my friends heard it, pretty sure that even Pegasus didn't hear it. But Himeko did hear it. She felt it, too.  
  
Girl, let me take over! You're in no condition to do this! You need rest! You're literally worrying yourself sick! she cried in our head. I hesitated to reply, thinking about my next move and trying to control my bowels. The sickening taste of bile stung my mouth.  
  
No. If I let you take over, that means we have to get a penalty. And I don't want to find out what a penalty is. I thought. Himeko continued to protest, even though she knew I was right. I finally reached out my hand to move the pawn directly in front of my queen, and moved it two spaces. It was too far to the right of the pawn Pegasus had moved for him to take it, and he knew it. He immediately moved his pawn that was right across the board from the one I had moved, placing it two spaces forward, to meet mine. That pawn of mine wasn't going anywhere, but Pegasus was falling for my trap. I was setting him up, weakening his defenses by moving them away from his king and getting ready to get in there and knock him out. The idea, though, was to get him to move one pawn in particular. Whether or not he did could decide the game. Time to make a sacrifice. I moved the pawn in front of my far left rook one space, putting it diagonal of the first pawn he had moved. He took the pawn, setting it beside the board. This was the part I was afraid of. If the dream was right.  
  
" Ah!" a familiar voice cried. I could feel my eyes fill up with tears even as I turned to look, to my right. There they were. My brothers. Yoshi had been slashed on the chest. Just like my dream. Instinctively, I reached out for them, Mokuba included, but they were farther away than they appeared. Pegasus tsked me.  
  
" No, no. No touching." He said. At that exact moment, behind me, Seto decided to barge in. I turned just in time to see him crash into some sort of barrier, and stumble back. " Sorry, Kaiba boy, you can't come any closer. Miss Yuki needs to do this herself." Pegasus told him. I looked at him, seeing him in a way I had never seen him before. His eyes met mine, and I saw an emotion I had never noticed before. A special look, just for me. I turned away from him, trying to blink back those tears. I couldn't, not now. I turned to my brothers again. They looked at me with adoration and faith. I wished I could have the same blind trust in myself as they had in me.  
  
" We know you can do it, Yuki!" Mokuba cried.  
  
" Don't worry about us, we're fine." Yoshi added, despite the blood running from him.  
  
" Go, sissy! Beat that crazy man up!" Yukio cried out. Laughter rang out from everyone except Pegasus. Even I managed a chuckle, wiping away a few stubborn tears.  
  
That's them? Himeko asked, an amount of awe in her thoughts.  
  
That's them. I confirmed. I saw my mother's face suddenly, bidding me to fight for what I believed was right. Himeko saw it too. I believe this is right. This is right. I told myself, then reached out my hand to move another chess piece. Using my freed rook, which I had freed my last turn, I took the pawn that had just taken my pawn. Then, Pegasus moved his queen to take the rook. I winced as Mokuba cried out.  
  
" I'm sorry!" I cried, turning to face them. " I didn't see that! I should have been more careful!" I cried.  
  
" Shut up and play." Mokuba said, wiping blood away from the cut on his cheek and smiling at me. I smiled gratefully back, then turned to face my opponent, moving my bishop into the space I had freed at the beginning of the game. Pegasus responded by moving his queen in the fashion of a rook to take the pawn I had right in front of his. Yukio cried out in pain and I tried my very best to ignore him. I had to concentrate and get rid of that queen. Good God, I thought, a grin spreading across my face.  
  
What? Himeko asked.  
  
How could he make such an amateur mistake? I wondered. He had placed his queen right in front of mine. I used my queen as a rook, moving it up the board, and took his queen. I placed it beside the board and looked at Pegasus.  
  
" Oh, I didn't see that! How could I have made that mistake?" he asked. That was exactly what I wanted to know.  
  
" Be careful, Yuki! He pulls stunts like this all the time!" Seto called. I took his advice to heart. There had to be some plan behind this. I moved my bishop to take the pawn of his that was right in front of my queen. Pegasus seemed to see what I was up to, but he couldn't seem to find a way to stop me. That was exactly what I wanted. He moved his king over into the space that his queen had left, thus preventing me from putting him in check when I moved my bishop. I then moved my bishop to take his rook, trapped by his own pieces from escape. Pegasus then paused for a minute before moving his knight in an L-shape so that it was diagonal to the left from his king. It was a good move. I could have sent my queen in and made a checkmate if he hadn't done it. I responded by moving my other bishop diagonally to the left three spaces. Pegasus moved the pawn that I had put in danger, the one in front of his own bishop, forward one space. Then I moved my queen to the left one space. After a few moments, Pegasus moved the pawn in front of the rook I hadn't taken. I knew he was trying to free up some of his more powerful pieces. Well, I would just have to take those pieces. I moved the bishop I had placed in position two of my turns ago clear to his end of the board, moving, of course, diagonally. Then, Pegaus moved the rook he had freed earlier ahead two spaces. That foiled part of my plan. I dared not take the pawn in front of Pegasus left bishop with my queen, which was in front of it, or his rook would get my queen. I could use my bishop, the one that had taken his other rook, but then, the boys would get another slash. That was what made chess so hard. You have to sacrifice pieces to win, and that made this twisted version of Pegasus's terrible. For every piece I had to lose, the boys would get hurt.  
  
I sighed and moved my bishop to take the pawn, and Pegasus immediately took that with his rook, even though he was putting his rook in danger by my queen. I winced as tears streamed down my face while a long bloody gash appeared down Yoshi's back and he screamed. I took the rook with my queen. If I didn't, he would take my queen with the rook on the next turn. I grinned widely. I had Pegasus right where I wanted him.  
  
" You're a really sick monster, you know that?" I asked him. Just as in my dream, he laughed.  
  
" Maybe. But I'm in control, so this sick monster gets to make all the rules." He said.  
  
" I'll make you pay for every drop of blood you spill from the people I love. I'll make you pay dearly." I told him.  
  
" That, Miss Yuki, I seriously doubt." Pegasus said.  
  
" We'll see." I said, moving my queen forward to take Pegasus's bishop. The knight he had set to defend his king was useless.  
  
" Checkmate." I announced, reaching over and tipping his king. " I win." I added. The next thing I knew, someone had grabbed me around the waist and was swinging me through the air. I laughed and turned, expecting to see Seto. Instead, I saw Honda, who let go of me quickly.  
  
" Sorry. I got a little too excited, I guess." He said. Seto grabbed me and gave me a triumphant hug. Anzu and Mai later told me that he was giving Honda a death glare over my shoulder. I pulled away from him and went to the boys, spreading my arms for them. They smiled up at me, their cuts vanishing. And then, the goons grabbed them.  
  
" Hey, let go of them!" I cried, lunging wildly. I was grabbed roughly by another goon and tossed violently away.  
  
" Yuki!" a bunch of my friends cried in unison, running to my aid. By the time Himeko and I managed to regain our bearings, Seto had a bloody nose and was holding his gut, and the boys were gone. Yugi, his darker self, knelt beside me.  
  
" I'm sorry, Yuki. We tried to save them for you." He said.  
  
" It's alright. Thank you." I said, despite the tears running down my cheeks. I was surprised by the urge to call him brother. I stood and walked over to Seto, wrapping my arm around his shoulders and supporting his weight on me.  
  
" Are you okay?" I asked him.  
  
" Yeah." He lied. I smiled weakly at him. Himeko sighed inwardly, but I didn't make any comment.  
  
" Well, you passed all the games." Pegasus said. " I suppose you'll want to rest before the battle that will spawn the new age." He added. He didn't wait for our answer before summoning his goons to take us away. I helped Seto walk, trying to ignore the fact that Honda was walking closer to me than he ever had. I felt like, all around me, everything I thought I had known was coming apart.  
  
*+*+*  
  
Pain made me take in another sharp breath, but that breath only caused more pain. I was exhausted, hurt, worried, and hurt in a totally different way.  
  
All my life, people had held me as emotionless, cruel, and ruthless. And all my life, I had believed them. I had believed that I was heartless. But now, I felt my heart. Felt it like I never had before. I had always thought my heart was Mokuba, but know, it throbbed in a way I had never imagined. For a girl. For a girl who needed me, almost as much as I needed to see her just to make sure she was real. To touch he just to know I hadn't dreamed her up. I was Seto Kaiba, champion Duelist, teenage owner of a multi- billion dollar corporation, genius, the all-time success story. From orphan to billionaire. But no one factored in Yuki. She had always been the calm in my chaotic life. When I went to visit her on her land in America, I found peace and happiness. I would go fishing with her, laugh at her jokes while she laughed at mine. She was normalcy. Sure, her father was also rich, but she had lived out her life like a normal American girl. She even attended a public school. I did as well, when it suited me, but that was mostly something to occupy my time. For Yuki, it was a way of life. I had always told her that I would get her out of there, take her to some far away exotic place, and make sure she was the happiest girl on Earth. Of course, she would only laugh, despite how serious I was. She couldn't comprehend that she was too good for the life she led. That she was a flawless diamond floating in a bed of mud and coal. I had always seen her as a flawless diamond. As long as I'd known her.  
  
I had never considered that I might love Yuki before that night, lying there in a bed, trying to control the pain and get some rest, exhausted but unable to sleep. She was always my friend, my companion, but she had never had the ability to become my lover. But now, my heart pounding in my chest so hard it made my bruised ribs ache, I wondered how I could have missed it. The gentle way I always reached to touch her, the pain I felt when she was hurt. Was this love? Well, if it was, it sure hurt a lot!  
  
Then there was Himeko. Yuki's opposite. Where Yuki was kind, Himeko was cold. Where Yuki was naïve and innocent, Himeko was knowing and experienced. Yuki was light where Himeko was dark. They completed each other, yet they confused me. The danger Himeko put off was undoubtedly attractive, and yet, Yuki was a part of my very essence, so deeply connected to me that I would never be able to break the bond.  
  
I sat up in bed, and Yugi, to my right, lifted his head wearily to observe me. I fumbled in the darkness for the bottle of pain killers we had found in a first aid box. I found the bottle and gulped three pills down. For an instantaneous flash, I actually considered gulping the rest of the bottle down and ending this emotional turmoil. Instead, I set the bottle down. It was the first time in my life I had considered committing suicide. Anyone would, if they had lived my life. What with people only interested in you for what you can do for them, and girls always trying to win you like you're some prize at the fair, and all because you're rich... What pulled me through? I didn't know, but I thought it probably had a lot to do with Mokuba and Yuki. Yugi sat up entirely, his eyes still on me. We were the only ones awake in the cold, concrete room. Jou was snoring to my left and Honda was laying spread-eagle on the bed to Jou's left.  
  
" What's the matter with you?" Yugi whispered.  
  
" Just thinking." I said. I stayed sitting up, even though I had intended to lay down. Yugi sighed softly.  
  
" You're thinking about Yuki." He said after a moment. I looked at him, startled.  
  
" How did you know?" I asked.  
  
" I don't know. Yami and Himeko are twins, so that must make Yuki and I related somehow. Besides, everyone's thinking about Yuki. She's been through a lot." Yugi said quietly. I sat silently after a moment.  
  
" I suppose Anzu would say I'm discovering my heart, finally." I said, a small smile passing over my lips.  
  
" Probably." Yugi said with a chuckle. He then became serious. " It's tough to care about someone like that, especially when they don't know." He said seriously.  
  
" How would you know?" I asked.  
  
" I know." Yugi responded, sadness tainting his voice. " I know all about it." He added.  
  
" What's going to happen tomorrow?" I asked after a few minutes of silence.  
  
" I wish I knew. All Yami will tell me is that whoever wins and whoever loses, a new age will be born." Yugi said.  
  
" Why does that scare me?" I asked, not really expecting anyone to answer my question.  
  
" What? You, the almighty Kaiba, get scared?" Yugi asked, feigning disbelief. I chuckled.  
  
" Yes, I do. I am human, you know." I said. Yugi nodded.  
  
" Yeah, I know." He agreed. " I'm scared too. I don't know what's going to happen tomorrow. All I know is that Yami's scared, so that's plenty reason for me to be blubbering like a baby."  
  
" I wonder how Yuki's dealing with it." I thought out loud.  
  
" The way I should be dealing with it. Sleeping." Yugi said, dropping his head back down onto the pillow. I smiled softly as his breathing became deep and even, noticing that the pain killers had done their work.  
  
" Kaiba, I don't know what you're doing awake, but go to sleep!" Jou growled at me, rolling over in his bed. I smiled again. A friendship had been forged between us, from the fire of anger, by the anvil of murder and hammer of evil. I don't think I'd ever be truly mad at him ever again.  
  
" Shut up and go to sleep yourself." I retorted. That didn't mean I had to act like I'd never be truly mad at him. I flopped back down into the bed. I didn't know what was going to happen tomorrow. History may very well repeat itself, I thought worriedly as I drifted to sleep. I might die tomorrow as my past self died so long ago. I had to have faith, which was a new thing to me entirely. Himeko and Yami weren't alone this time, they had Yugi and Yuki. That was going to turn the tide and this time, things would be different.  
  
A/N: Okay, that part was short and a little dumb. But it get's things going. Next part, the battle of all time will begin! Pegasus vs. Yami and Himeko! But Pegasus has a plan that could ruin our heroes, or win the most deadly game they've ever played! (laughs) How was that? Did I sound like a bad announcer? Probably! Also, I've noticed some people complaining that this story is a bit of a mary sue. Well, sorry! It is about Yuki, you know. If I wanted to write about someone else, I would. And I have tried to make it less so. And on top of that, someone claimed that the girls are a little witchy (they didn't use that exact word ^_^), especially Yuki. Well, news flash! Yuki just happens to be modeled after me. And that just happens to be how I would react. It's called an independent streak. Sorry if you don't like it. Well, don't forget to review! ~Rogue Fox 


	10. The Beginning of Genesis

Yuki  
  
By: Rogue Fox  
  
Part Ten. The Beginning of Genesis  
  
You get used to seeing the world through someone else's eyes. You get used to letting them do all the hard stuff for you. You get used to being inactive most of the time. I certainly did. I got used to it fast. I had been in Yuki's head for no more than two weeks. But already, I was used to her and the situation. But today was different. I was pumped. I was ready. I had waited a whole millennium for this day. I had waited, remembering the entire while, even while I slept in the darkness, my father's lifeless face as they sealed his coffin, Nen leaping to protect me and then lying equally lifeless. I remembered all the crimes that had been committed against me and the people I loved. And I rejoiced. I rejoiced that today, those crimes would be paid for, paid in full. Today I would get my revenge. Today would be the realization of all my hopes and dreams and anger and hatred. Today, I would join my loved ones in the eternal bliss of the afterlife. Today, my brother and I would get what was so sorely owed to us.  
  
Yuki was a buzzing ball of energy herself. She seemed to have dropped away that tired shell she had been the day before overnight. She enacted the emotions that I could not enact. Mai and Anzu were understanding to an extent, but how could they know? Yuki was ready for it to end, as was I. But I was looking for an ending different from hers. I would leave behind the girl I had become so attached to today. Today, I would set her free, and in the process, become free myself. I would finally shed the shackles of the curse that bound me to this world and soar away.  
  
" What's going to happen today?" Anzu asked Yuki. Yuki waited patiently for me to answer, since she had no clue herself.  
  
Nothing, I thought blissfully. And everything, all at once. I added. Yuki relayed my confusing answer and Mai told her in no uncertain terms that that was not a good answer. I just laughed. Life has no meaning to a dead person. So what did I have to lose?  
  
*+*+*  
  
I watched through Yugi's eyes as Honda and Jou wrestled. Kaiba stepped over them to the connected bathroom, which just happened to be what the two were fighting over. Kaiba had already slammed the door and locked it before the two realized that he had taken it.  
  
" Hey! That's not fair!" Honda cried. Jou pounded on the door.  
  
" Too bad. Should've thought of that before you started fighting." Kaiba called back. Jou called him a few names I'd had half a mind to call Kaiba before. " Oh, come on. Surely you can do better than that?" Kaiba asked from inside the bathroom. Jou fumed at him.  
  
" Why you little." he growled.  
  
They're just blowing off steam. Yugi told me, after noticing that I was watching them. I chuckled in our head.  
  
I'd probably be over there with them if I was in control. I thought. You're the only one with any sense. I told him. I could feel a bit of heat coming up Yugi's neck. He always did this whenever anyone complimented him.  
  
I don't have any more sense than anyone else here. he told me. And I'm just as nervous. he added. Are you leaving today? I mean, really leaving? Forever? Yugi asked me finally. I had been dreading that question, yet I knew it would come. And yet, as painful as it was, I had to answer him honestly. Or, as close as I could come.  
  
Yes. No. I sighed mentally. Probably, my little friend. I'm afraid that I can't do any better than that. I told him. Yugi was silent for a few moments. I was unable to read his thoughts. Thoughts that aren't directed at someone are like the expressions you see on someone's face. Sometimes, especially when you know the person behind the expression as well as I know Yugi, you can read it immediately. Sometimes, it takes a minute to figure it out. And sometimes, it's impossible.  
  
If you do go, I want you to know that living all alone in this head is going to be weird. I don't know what I'll do with myself without you always with me. Yugi thought. Although, a little more privacy would be a definite plus. he added with a mental laugh. I laughed as well, all though I was touched. It's kind of funny. No matter how hard you try to get rid of all those emotions, they just keep coming back. I figured I was probably sentimental because I was so close to the finish line.  
  
It's been hard for you. I thought. I know it has.  
  
What's been hard? Yugi asked.  
  
Everything. The last. what? Over a year? The last year has been tough for you. I told him bluntly. Yugi cringed a little.  
  
Well, yeah. It's a little hard to face up to the fact that there's an ancient spirit in your head, spending every waking moment with you, without dialing up the local asylum. But, it would have been a lot harder without you. he told me.  
  
Then let's give you back your head. I said. I sensed a wave of helplessness from him. No, you can't help me. This is my fight, and I won't have you suffer for a mistake I made a millennia ago. I told him before he could ask. Again, a wave of helplessness. I had always been blunt and to the point with Yugi, because I had always felt he deserved that much, having this whole situation shoved on him like it was. He didn't ask for me to live in his head, hear his every thought, and know almost everything about him. So I felt like he deserved to know whatever I knew. Little friend, this is what I've always wanted, ever since you solved the Puzzle. To go home. You know I'll miss you, but it's not the end of the world. This is a chance for you as much as it for me. You can be a normal teenage guy again. I told him.  
  
What if I don't want to be? Yugi asked me softly. As much as I thought I knew about him, he still managed to surprise me.  
  
I thought. I mumbled mentally.  
  
You thought that I still believe all those things I used to say when I first figured you out. Sure, it wasn't easy. It still isn't easy. But I'd trade being "normal" for having all my friends safe and near me any day. Yugi said.  
  
You'd never be able to see that shrink Grandfather keeps suggesting. I cracked. I'm not very good at the whole humor thing. I used to be. I used to make Isis and Mariah laugh endlessly, make everyone I loved roll on the floor. But a millennia locked away in a shattered puzzle can do that to you. Soon, I'll be able to make them all laugh again. I thought, mostly to myself. If Yugi heard, he didn't comment on it. But this time, Yugi laughed, and his laughter soothed my nervousness. He was like Isis used to be to me. Calming.  
  
Yeah. He'd say I have schizophrenia or DID, or something. he told me. At that moment, there was a knock on the door. The process of beating each other up while waiting for the bathroom to open up was halted. Kaiba, who had gotten out and was nearest to the door, opened it. It was one of the goons in black.  
  
" The Boss wishes your presence. He said it is time for the dawn of a new age." The goon told us. Yugi peered over his shoulders to see three girls waiting for us. Anzu, looking concerned and too much like Mariah for my personal comfort, or for Yugi's. Mai, wearing a scowl and determined to look as threatening as possible. And Yuki, looking as cool as anyone could ever hope to be. I saw the cold twinkle in her eye that told me Isis was wide awake and ready for today. I reached with my soul across the distance and felt the meshing of souls that could only be described as twins.  
  
Ready? I asked Isis, while Yugi asked Yuki the same question physically. Both girls grinned, or in Isis's case, gave off a mental signal that suggested a grin.  
  
" Bring it on." They both said, laughing.  
  
*+*+*  
  
Once, a long time ago, my father told me that I was something special in the world. I was something that would make a difference. He said someday the world would be proud that I was born into it. I never really believed him. How could I be so special? I was just me, Yuki. I wasn't anyone special. I didn't have any special talents. I wasn't a great leader, I wasn't brave, I wasn't going to win the Noble Peace Prize, and I wasn't even all that pretty. As a matter of fact, I thought I was down right plain.  
  
I was thinking a lot about my father and mother as the goons led us down another concrete corridor, just like all the others. I felt like I was smothering. I was buried alive. Edgar Allan Poe wrote a story about that once. About a man who buried his boss alive. The story raced through my head and I tried to chase it away. That was certainly the last thing I needed.  
  
My mother was the brave and beautiful one. I didn't really look that much like her. She had wavy, beautiful, bright blonde hair and a smile like the world's best cheerleader. She was a cheerleader once, before she had me. She was going to compete on the college level, but I came along and she never got that far. She acted like a really good cheerleader, too, except not so perky. She was always happy, always smiling, always showing off those perfect teeth. When Papa died, she smiled a smile I had never seen before. I grew up really fast when I saw that terrible, heart-broken smile. But even though I knew she was hurting, she still held her head high and did everything to make her kids' life just as good as it had been, despite the fact that it was all slowly dwindling away. She kept that brave face up to her last breath, despite all the pain I knew she went though. I wanted so much to make my mom's pain just go away. If I had know that her pain was going to go away sooner than I had thought, maybe I wouldn't have been such a rebellious teenager. I was just being stupid, and I knew it. She didn't deserve to die. She was a great woman who loved her family and children and friends, who loved life and living. Out of all the evil, twisted people in the world like Pegasus, why do the truly good people have to die? I didn't realize I had tears running down my face until Seto wiped them away for me.  
  
" Are you okay?" he asked.  
  
" Yeah. I'm fine." I told him. He didn't believe me, but he left me alone. Himeko was silent, letting me reflect in my own rights.  
  
When you realize that you've lost almost everyone you ever loved, you sort of start to get angry with them. And as much as I didn't want to admit it, I was angry with my parents. I was furious. How could they do this to me? Did they have any idea what kind of pain and trauma I was facing because they just up and died? I knew it wasn't fair of me. But I needed something to direct all my anger at. My head started to throb. I knew something big would happen today. Something that would change my life forever. This was the day that, in my father's eyes, the world would finally discover special little me. Excuse me for not leaping for joy. I didn't want to be a hero, or special. I just wanted what was left of my family back home, safe and sound. I wanted to go home with them and pick up the shattered pieces of my life and try to put it all back together. I wanted to cuddle up with Seto on the couch and not feel that strange feeling that had been plaguing me since I had seen him try to come to my aid when I was playing chess against Pegasus. I wanted my ignorance back. I wanted to forget all about the Millennium Items and Pegasus and all his goons. But it didn't look like that was going to happen. This first, I told myself as we were led into an utterly huge room, this first and then you get your wish.  
  
So this is where he wants to hold the battle of the ages. Himeko muttered. I walked past the rest of the group, relieved to sense Yugi at my side. It felt right for me to be next to him, ready to fight by his side.  
  
" We're here, Pegasus. And we're ready." Yugi called into the seemingly infinite darkness ahead of us.  
  
" Oh, are you?" Pegasus answered, stepping from the shadows. " I'm afraid I have a little surprise for you. Your catalysts will fight with you." He said. I knew he was talking to Himeko and Yugi's dark side, but still, I felt the shock. This was their fight. Yugi and I were simply supposed to wait patiently inside our own heads until they were done. That was the deal.  
  
" What are you talking about?" I asked. The question was mostly from Himeko.  
  
" I'm talking about a separation spell." Pegasus said, raising his hand to us. The blast that hit me was astounding.  
  
The most blinding pain I would ever know slammed over me. I could feel my bones twisting, breaking, and then resetting themselves as they formed from their own structure another set of bones. Then I could feel those new bones jab out from my skin, hear my skin rip and then make a strange "shlip" sound as it pieced itself together. My muscles and organs began the same breaking, twisting, ripping thing my bones had done, each part of my body forming a replica to serve another. It was like giving birth, I later decided, to an adult child without going through any term at all. My brain rattled and shook as Himeko echoed my cries of pain. Vaguely, I could hear Yugi as well. Then, instead of two physical voices and one mental, I heard four physical voices. Two men, one considerably deeper than the first, and another woman aside from me. Unable to stand anymore, I collapsed onto something soft and fleshy. My hands fell against bare skin and I forced myself up. Whoever I had landed on did the same. It was the strangest thing I had ever had happen to me. It was like looking in a mirror and knowing I really wasn't. I knew it was Himeko. I just knew it was. Suddenly, she reached out with her own hand and touched my hair.  
  
" I never realized how much like me you look." She said. I sat there and stared dumbly. My mother's face flashed before my eyes. She looked like my mother! She had the same vibrant hair and slim, curvaceous form. There were differences, sure. My mom didn't have crimson and black bangs or red violet eyes. My mom certainly would never dream of wearing Himeko's outfit, which was the white skirt and top I had seen her wearing in our visions of the past. And my mom would never look so cold, uncaring. and dangerous. Swallowing the urge to call her something between "Mom," "Sister," and "Himeko," I pulled my head away from her and stood. She stood with me. I was undoubtedly taller, if only by a few inches. My head swung to Yugi, his safety prominent in my mind. I swear, I thought for a second I was seeing double. The first Yugi was the one I was most familiar with, the one who people said I resembled strongly. Short, always with a sweet expression. The one beside him, staring at him like he was a ghost, was taller, and his expression matched Himeko's better than mine, all though the resemblance was clear between all four of us. I was tallest, but the bigger Yugi was definitely the strongest. That much was clear to me, because he was wearing his Egyptian Pharaoh stuff and was thus shirtless.  
  
" Hi, Yami." Yugi said, addressing his bigger self. Yami, I thought. Now I know his name. Himeko and Yami locked eyes and in a few seconds, they embraced each other ferociously. It must have been terrible for them both, the long separation. I glanced down at myself. I had magically donned the outfit what Himeko usually wore when she was in control. My outfit was similar to Yugi's, but I noted jealously that he had pants, while my legs were left bare. I glanced to Pegasus, noticing something crumpled at the floor beside him.  
  
" That's not Pegasus. The real Pegasus is on the floor next to him. This is Nepano." Himeko muttered warningly. I wondered if she could still read my thoughts. " The separation spell goes both ways. It affects everyone harboring a spirit within a certain distance which is determined by the power of the user." She continued. I winced.  
  
" You can stop sounding like a textbook now." I said. Despite the bravado I was putting on, I was very shaken. The pain left behind hollow echoes of itself in my head that I was not eager to dwell on. Plus, not having Himeko in my head was definitely odd. It felt so weird to be alone in my own head.  
  
" I would like you to have a moment to greet an old friend, little Yugi." Nepano said, as two people stepped from the shadows. One was being dragged, the other walking confidently. I saw two young men, my age or so, with long, wild white hair. The one being dragged looked younger than the other.  
  
" Ryou!" Yugi cried. The one being dragged looked up sharply, yanked his arm from the grasp of a goon in black and ran to us.  
  
" Hello. Imagine running into you here." He said dryly.  
  
" Couldn't you leave the extra baggage in the Shadow Realm where it belonged?" Yami asked crossly. The white-haired guy glanced back and forth between the two of them.  
  
" Trust me, he'd still be there if I had a say about it." He said. Himeko and I stared on in puzzlement.  
  
" Oh, Yuki, Himeko, this is Ryou Bakura. The guy up there is Yami Bakura. Ryou, the tall one is Yuki and the one in the scanty clothes is Himeko." Yugi said suddenly. I felt suddenly odd, like introductions were a little out of place.  
  
" Hello." I said politely. Himeko barely glanced at him, turning all her attention to Nepano.  
  
" Alright, enough games. Time to do this." She announced. " Dark Eternity!" she cried, hurling her ball of energy at Nepano, who cast it aside. " That was just a warning shot." Himeko called, but I didn't believe her and I don't think Nepano did either. Nepano ignored her.  
  
" Do you know that I have almost all of the Millennium Items? My friend here," Nepano said, gesturing to Yami Bakura, who smiled maliciously. His smile sent shivers up my spine. " Was happy to donate his fair share to the cause. We only lack two. The Millennium Puzzle, and your little mystery, Yuki." Nepano said, smiling at me. Again, shivers up the spine. My hand instinctively went to my orb.  
  
" I won't let you have it! You'll have to pry it from my cold dead hands!" I yelled, surprised at the anger pumping into my blood. Himeko gave me an appreciative look. I knew her very existence depended on that little orb. Yugi gripped his Puzzle similarly.  
  
" That can be arranged for you, my dear." Nepano told me. I gave him a feral snarl. I didn't recognize this part of me. This was the angry, dark side of me that Himeko dragged out with her when she took control.  
  
" Just try it. You made a mistake. Now, we outnumber you!" I told him. I could feel all my friends smile. So what if Pegasus had brought in Yami Bakura? There were four of us, five counting Ryou, and two of them.  
  
" Three novices and two kids who never even got to complete their training versus two experts? That doesn't match up well at all." Yami Bakura said, his first words. I didn't like his voice. It was even creepier than his smile. I smiled at him. I thought maybe I was losing it.  
  
" You remind me of the boogey man. You're creepy and scary to the sight and touch, but there's nothing real about you." I told him, imitating Himeko's voice as best I could.  
  
" You'd do well not to make me mad, little girl." He told me. " You will learn fear today, little girl. Learn fear and tremble at the might which will be ours." He said.  
  
" Not if we take it from you!" Yami shouted suddenly. He surprised me. I didn't think he would try to use my talk with Yami Bakura as an advantage. I should have. Himeko and Yami were prepared to do anything to get their revenge and prevent Nepano from using whatever sick plot he had. Yami didn't spare his breath on shouting an incantation. He just attacked. The air billowed around him and blew past Yugi, who dove out of the way. The force behind Yami's attack was devastating, and Nepano didn't stay to see how much so. He headed after Himeko and I, leaving his partner to take care of Yami and Yugi. I dove away, not eager to be caught in the middle of an exchange of energy blows. Instead, Yugi and I fell back, near to our group of friends. My thoughts were that if Nepano or Yami Bakura tried for them, I would defend them. Somehow. I was actually hoping that the knowledge would just come to me like it did before. I knew I was stronger now, Himeko had said so herself. So maybe.  
  
I didn't see Nepano coming at me. All I knew was that he was there. At first, I thought he was going for my throat to choke me. But instead, he grabbed my orb, and pulled. Hard. I thrashed madly.  
  
" Help!" I cried. The leather strap that bound the orb to my neck was digging into the back of my neck, pressing painfully against nerves and muscles. Why wasn't anyone coming to help me? It's so hot, I thought in a panic, it's stifling! I'm being roasted to death! I flailed again. My feet found Nepano's gut and I planted them firmly there, then pushed with all my might. The strain against my spinal cord was unbearable. I screamed in pain. Fortune was with me, for at that moment, Nepano lost his grip. I gasped on the ground where I had fallen, raising my head. Ryou lay on the ground with Anzu, Seto, and all my other friends. Yugi was in front of them, trying to differ stray energy waves. Yami and Yami Bakura were locked in a battle to the death, and it didn't look like the young man I had somehow labeled as "brother" was going to live. Himeko was pounding futilely at an invisible wall that separated her from Nepano and I. So that's why no one was coming. I stared. They all looked so helpless. So pale and scared. Even Yami, whose face was emotionless, had despair in his features. Everything was soundless to me because of the energy shield, but I could see their lips forming encouraging cries meant for Yugi and Yami, mostly. But Seto was watching me. I never learned how to read lips, but I knew he was trying to tell me something urgent. He was telling me to get up. Get up now. I pushed myself into a sitting position. Yami was tossed like a rag doll against Yugi. My breath was caught in my throat as Yami Bakura closed in for the kill. Utterly helpless. Yugi struggled up from under Yami's weight, but it was pointless. He didn't have the strength. Yami's lifeless body was pinning him down. Yami Bakura smiled and said something, but Yugi refused to respond. Helpless. The word kept ringing in my head. Helpless. Yami Bakura plucked the Millennium Puzzle off Yugi's neck. Instantly, Yami began to fade. Helpless. Yami awoke and cried out in terror. Even I could understand that for the first time, he knew fear. He didn't want to die yet. Not yet. Of course he desired death, but not before his work was finished. Helpless. Yugi was saying something to Yami, who I knew was dying. Yugi was helpless. They were all helpless. Even Himeko, as she ran to her brother's side, held his head in her lap, weeping. Helpless. Helpless as I watched my mom's eyes roll back in her head, her body convulsing in one final attempt at life as she died in my arms. Utterly helpless to stop her from leaving. Unable to save Yami. Helpless as I watched them haul my father's broken, bloody body from the twisted remains of his car. Helpless as Yami brushed away Himeko's tears. I knew he was telling her not to be afraid, even as the body Yugi had created for him faded away. Everyone was crying. Yami was a part of them as important as my brothers were to me. Helpless. Helpless. Helpless. No! NO! I won't be helpless anymore! I screamed in my head.  
  
" NOOOOO! I WON'T!" I screamed, echoing my thoughts verbally. Then, Nepano grabbed the orb again. This time, the cord pressed against my airways, since he had grabbed it from behind me. " No." I managed to choke out. Yami couldn't die. The cord snapped and I was helpless. Helpless. Now Himeko too. She began to fade. Mom's eyes focused, unfocused, focused on me. Himeko looked at me sadly. Helpless. Dad's skull was bashed in. I could see his brain. Helpless. Yami gave Yugi and I a weak smile. No, I wasn't. Not this time. " Not this time. I won't let you take them away!" I cried. Then that feeling again. I had felt it before. Like I was floating. The power was incredible. It was uncontrollable, but I knew I had to control it. aim it at him. he caused it all. all the pain. all the helplessness. no more. Then I let it all fly, all that energy. Right at Nepano. And grabbed the orb. Then, the glow came. This warm, golden glow. All the Millennium Items came to me. Why me, I wondered. They circled around me, as though waiting for instructions. " What's your secret?" I wondered out loud. They began to circle faster, my own orb pulling from my grasp to join them. The Scales, the Eye, the Ring, and all the others. Whirling round and round. A bright light flashed. Something hard appeared in my hands. I looked down. A small, golden ornately decorated key was in my hands. I felt my feet touch ground and I looked around myself. Yami and Himeko were gone. I sank to my knees, the tears already beginning to flow. Helpless. I had been helpless after all.  
  
" Yuki." someone breathed. It sounded like Yugi, but I wasn't sure. I wasn't sure of anything anymore.  
  
" The Key of Ra. The little girl has the Key of Ra." Yami Bakura muttered. I sat there, silent and still, save for the tiny "plop" as my tears fell to the ground. A hand grabbed my shoulder.  
  
" Yuki? Are you okay?" Seto said. I stared at the spot I had last seen them. Just like that, they were gone. Snuffed out like a candle in a storm.  
  
" Yeah." I muttered. It was an automatic reaction, and I immediately corrected it. " No." I said. " No." I repeated. They must have felt so helpless. Helpless. just like me. " Himeko. Yami. I'm sorry. So sorry." I whispered. I had lost.  
  
" She's got the Key of Ra! We have to get it!" Yami Bakura yelled. I didn't pay any attention to him. Instead I gripped the key in my hands and held it to my chest. This was all I had left. I heard the struggle behind me ensue, but I didn't care. How could I betray them like this?  
  
" Yuki! Help!" Anzu screamed. They were fighting frantically to save their lives from the onslaught of Yami Bakura and Nepano.  
  
" No." I murmured. I would not lose them too. The light returned, this time from the key. " I won't let you take them too!" I screamed. The rage, the sorrow, the fear, everything I had felt boiled over into one last, ferocious assault. I heard Nepano's dying screams, and those of Yami Bakura. My friends and I surrendered to the power of the light quietly. What was the point of fighting the inevitable? Past, present, even the future swirled together in my head. And then. I died.  
  
Death is a marvelous and hideous thing. I felt like I was omnipresent. I was the walls, the floor, the ground beneath the floor. I was the very air. I was time itself. Then, I felt like I was being hurled through a great tunnel at terrible speeds. And then, I felt nothing. Blackness crept over me, and I knew only one word. One single word echoed across the barren, shattered reaches of my mind, uttered by my mother's voice.  
  
" Helpless."  
  
A/N: How was that? I think it was pretty good, if I do say so myself. The next part will be the last official part of Yuki. Then I'll probably do a epilogue, it all depends on how things turn out. After that, it's sequel time! Anyway, moral support is much appreciated, and if you don't have something nice to say, or constructive advice to give, keep your mouth shut! That's my mom's saying. ^_^ Well, thanks for reading! 


	11. Goodbye Isn't Forever

Yuki  
  
By: Rogue Fox  
  
Part Eleven. Goodbye Isn't Forever  
  
A/N: So, here we are. The last part of Yuki. ;_; Waaah! I'm gonna miss it! Sure, I intend to write a sequel, but it's just not the same. Again, thank you all for being supportive and even some of the flames. I hope you enjoy the last official part of Yuki.  
  
I could hear the soft swish of a gentle breeze teasing long grass, and, my eyes still closed from peaceful sleep, I was suddenly back home. I had fallen asleep in the back field, near the pond. I was totally alone, save the twittering birds in the trees that edged the pond. I had been fishing, but then I decided that had gotten boring and laid down to watch the clouds dance across the sky, eventually falling into a peaceful slumber. When I woke up, my cat was licking my face. I opened my eyes, in reality, I saw that I was lying amid tall grass, not unlike the field I had napped in so long ago. How long had it been? Ages, surely. I closed my eyes again and rolled over. It was so peaceful and sleepy here. I could lay there forever.  
  
" Yuki.." someone was calling me. Reluctantly I sat up and pulled myself to my feet. " Yuki.." the voice called again. I looked around. Where was I? I had never seen this place before. It was picturesque. Purple mountains in the distance reminded me of friendly guards, watching over me. The tall grass came up to my waist and swayed in the gentle breeze. " Yuki.." the voice called. I started toward where I thought the voice was coming from, but I tripped over something. Everything seemed hazy, and surreal. Even though I had fallen on my hands and knees relatively hard, I felt no pain. I looked at the thing I had tripped over. It was a guy. He was short, and somehow, I thought he looked like me. He gazed at me curiously. Somehow, he seemed familiar.  
  
" Hello." He said. I greeted him similarly.  
  
" Are you the person calling me?" I asked him.  
  
" No." he said. " I haven't been calling anyone."  
  
" Where are we?" I asked.  
  
" I don't know." He responded. I felt like there was something I was forgetting, something important. I helped the short guy to his feet and together we went searching for the voice I was hearing.  
  
" Yuki.." I heard it again! It came to me on the breeze. Where was it? I started to run, and the short guy cried his protests and chased after me. I saw two people in the distance.  
  
" Hey, look!" I cried, pointing.  
  
" Maybe one of them is calling you." My companion suggested. I ran all out, and amazingly, the little guy was able to keep up with me. I didn't get tired, either. I felt like I could run forever. Soon, we reached the two people in question.  
  
" Hello." I said as I approached them. They, like the little one, seemed familiar. One was a guy, taller than me with blonde hair and brown eyes. He smiled at me in greeting. I liked his smile. He seemed friendly. The other was a girl, also taller than me, but her eyes were a deep violet and her hair was long, wavy, and blonde. She also seemed friendly, if not a bit more suspicious than the guy. She was wearing a rather skimpy bathing suit and silk wrap. I realized I was also wearing a bating suit. The both greeted us politely.  
  
" She's hearing a voice calling to her. Are either one of you calling her?" my short companion asked them, pointing to me to indicate that I was the "she" he was speaking of.  
  
" No, I don't think so." The guy said, both shaking their heads no. I sighed and let my shoulders slump. Why did I have this nagging feeling I was forgetting something?  
  
" Hey, excuse me!" someone called. My hopes soared again, hoping maybe the owner of this voice was the one who was calling to me. I turned to see two people coming toward us. One was a girl, with short brown hair and blue eyes, wearing a bathing suit and a silk wrap. She waved to us as she and her companion drew near. Her companion was a guy about my height with brown eyes, white, wild hair, and a big grin on his face. Greetings were once again exchanged.  
  
" Do any of you know where we are?" the girl with the brown hair asked. We all said no.  
  
" Wherever we are, it's sure is a pretty place." My first companion, the short guy, said. He was agreed with by all on that one. Soon, we were joined by two more people. Both were guys. The first had brown hair cut into an odd style that reminded me of a large prism and brown eyes. The other had brown hair as well, but his was cut long and hung loose from his head, almost covering his piercing blue eyes. They asked similar questions.  
  
" Yuki.." the voice again! I jumped up and followed it, the group of people following me. Maybe the person calling me knows where we are and why we're here, I thought excitedly.  
  
Eventually, we came to a set of stairs. I ran up them two at a time, the others following me. When I reached the top, I saw a young man and woman waiting for me. They were dressed like ancient Egyptians. The girl looked like me.  
  
" Yuki." She said, sounding satisfied. And suddenly, I remembered. I remembered everything. Pegasus, Nepano, Yami Bakura, the Millennium Items, Himeko and Yami dying.... Everything. I looked up at Himeko. She looked fine, cool and calm as always.  
  
" Himeko!" I cried, flinging myself into her arms. I felt safe. Finally, I was safe. I felt Yami's hand on my shoulder, Yugi's arms around my waist. Finally safe. I can't describe the feeling that came over us all. It was joy, complete and perfect joy. We were all laughing, yelling, crying, hugging, and, in Jou and Mai's case, kissing. It was short, but the love behind it was not lost on me. It was a while before we all settled down.  
  
" Yuki, I wanted to thank you." Himeko said, after we had all seated ourselves on comfortable cushions.  
  
" For what?" I asked.  
  
" Well, first, for trying so hard to save us. Your friendship is something I'll never forget." Himeko said.  
  
" I'd never let her." Yami added with a laugh. I smiled. It felt so good to be safe. I cuddled against Seto, who looked completely content.  
  
" And also, for bringing this to the afterlife." Himeko continued, holding out the key that I had been holding before... I took it from her, not wanting to think about the end.  
  
" What is it, anyway?" I asked.  
  
" I remember that Nepano and Yami Bakura wanted it bad." Honda offered.  
  
" Don't say his name!" Ryou protested.  
  
" That doesn't surprise me. The one who the Key of Ra comes to wields infinite power. Yuki summoned the Key, so it belongs solely to her." Yami said. " Up until now, I'd always thought it was only a legend, a story for treasure hunters and glory seekers. I knew there was some truth to the legend, of course, or else I would have found my way to this place a long time ago. But the whole thing about the Millennium Items joining together, that seemed a little farfetched. Now I know it was true." He continued. Suddenly he laughed. I had never seen him laugh before. I think only Yugi was used to the idea at all. His happy eyes landed on me. " I think I underestimated you, Yuki. I thought you were an unknown element in the whole story. I never suspected you were the one who would summon the Key of Ra. I never even thought that you would have enough power to hold a mortal at bay. I was wrong, and I apologize." He said.  
  
" As do I. There is much I should have told you." Himeko said. It was good to see them together.  
  
" All that matters is that now it's all over." I said. Seto hugged me.  
  
" So... Are we where I think we are?" Mai asked.  
  
" The afterlife. We're all dead." Yami said. A silence so thick you could cut it with a knife fell over us.  
  
" Dead." Anzu breathed. The word seemed to blanket us even deeper in the silence.  
  
" There is a bright side." Yami added hastily. We all looked at him. " You all face a choice. You can still live. The power of the Key of Ra can give you back life. That is, if you want to." He said. I started.  
  
" Don't answer immediately. Think about it for a little while. No matter how long you stay here, no time passes in the world of the living until Yuki sets it in motion." Himeko said. I started.  
  
" What? Am I all-powerful just because I have this?" I asked, holding up the Key.  
  
" In a word, practically." Yami said, sighing.  
  
" There are limits, but very few. The only things you can't do are take the life of a good person, make someone fall in love with someone they don't truly love, and destroy a realm. Like the Shadow Realm, or the Realm of Life, or this place." Himeko said. " You could bend the flow of time, if you wanted to." She added. I stared at the key in my hands. So much power... No one person should ever have to wield it, I decided.  
  
*+*+*  
  
Dead. I couldn't believe I was dead. I stared out from a balcony over the fields of swaying grass. Such peaceful beauty. Is this heaven, I wondered. I waited for Yami to make some bright remark in my head, but it never came. I kept forgetting he wasn't there any more. He had a body of his own now. It was a little hard for me to get used to.  
  
I faced a decision like none I had ever faced before. I had to decide if I wanted to remain dead or go back to life. I sighed as I sensed someone approaching me.  
  
" Hello, Yami." I said, before he came into my visual range. He chuckled.  
  
" I'm sorry, little friend. I think I missed it when you gained so much power." He said.  
  
" I had to gain it very fast. Didn't have a choice." I said, blinking back tears as I remembered. Watching Yami die before my eyes...  
  
" I know what you're thinking about." Yami said suddenly. I smiled up at him.  
  
" Don't you always?" I asked. Yami looked at me sadly, even though I had meant it as a joke. Yami didn't always get my jokes.  
  
" Not any more." He said. " But I still know you well enough to know what you're thinking about right now. You're thinking about the decision. You still haven't made up your mind, even though you've been here a week. The others are pretty much decided, I think." He told me.  
  
" It's hard to resist this place. You just want to fall into it, let it take you away forever. But at the same time, I want to live. I want it so much I can taste it. I've still got a life, Yami." I told him, looking at him pleadingly. He smiled.  
  
" I know we all agreed not to influence each other's decision, but I want you to know this. Right now, I'm in limbo. I want to go on to the real afterlife, to see Mariah again. Then, I want to come back to your world." He told me.  
  
" What? Why?" I asked. I had thought for sure he would stay in the afterlife forever.  
  
" My father was a big influence on my life, even though he died when I was young. I always wanted to have a son of my own, so I could try to be as good a father as my own father was." Yami told me, turning his head away from me. A habit he picked up from me. " Mariah would have been the mother of that son, but fate intervened. I think... I think you are the son I would have had. I think you are, in a sense, my son and my brother both." He said, turning to face me. I stared at him.  
  
" Wow. I think that's the single most emotional thing I've ever heard you say." I told him, only to receive a bop on the head.  
  
" I'm serious!" he yelled.  
  
" I know, I know. And thanks. I really appreciate that." I told him. He smiled at me.  
  
" Himeko is probably telling Yuki the same thing. She'll do better than I did, though." He said.  
  
" You know how girls are." I said, shrugging.  
  
" What are you going to do?" Yami asked.  
  
" I think you know. I've got my whole life ahead of me, Yami." I said, by way of excuse. " I can't just turn my back and forget all about that."  
  
" I know. And I'm not asking you to." Yami said. " But you know... If the puzzle shatters, it's over. I'm gone forever. But if it doesn't..." Yami said, trailing his voice off deliberately. I grinned.  
  
" If it doesn't, we've got to find you a college major." I told him. He smiled.  
  
" What would I do without you, my friend?" he asked. I started.  
  
" You didn't call me little." I said in disbelief.  
  
" I know. I don't think you are anymore, and I don't think you will be much longer. If that makes any sense to you." He said. I nodded.  
  
" It does." I agreed.  
  
" Watch over Anzu for me." He said. " I still don't think about her that way, but she needs someone to watch over her. Just like Mariah." He added. I laughed, tears in my eyes. This was Yami's way of saying goodbye.  
  
" Okay, Yami. Okay." I said.  
  
*+*+*  
  
I hugged Himeko closely. I would miss her. She stayed near me throughout the entire meeting.  
  
" Mai and I have decided to go back. We'll keep our reasons to ourselves." Jou said, smiling at Mai. I cocked an eyebrow at Mai, who blushed and looked away. It had obviously been a joint decision between them, as it had between me and Seto.  
  
" I'm going back, too. I don't want to die before I get to marry the girl of my dreams." Honda announced. I knew he looked at me, but I didn't return his gaze. I wasn't sure what to think about Honda at the moment. He had come to me two days ago, asking me what I planned to do. I had smiled and told him that I didn't want to influence his opinion, so I couldn't tell him. I didn't tell Seto about it, because I knew he would get angry about it.  
  
" I'm going back. I swear I'm going to get into dance school, and I'm not dying until I do!" Anzu cried. Everyone laughed.  
  
" I'm also going back. My parents would kill me if I left like this." Ryou confessed.  
  
" You'd already be dead!" Jou cried.  
  
" I know. That's what makes it so dire that I return." Ryou said. More laughter.  
  
" I'm going." Yugi said. " There's just too much left to do."  
  
" Yuki and I are going back." Seto announced.  
  
" We came to Egypt to rescue our brothers. We're not going to just die and abandon them." I said. No, I wouldn't be like our mom and Mokuba's mom, just leave them behind. Yami and Himeko glanced at each other. Yugi and I knew what they planned, but they still had to tell everyone else.  
  
" We're staying. We'll go on to the real afterlife, meet up with the people we lost, and if we can, we'll come back to your world after that." Yami said. Everyone smiled, even though the sadness was clear.  
  
" Hey, don't worry about it, guys." Himeko said after a moment, her face bright. I knew the smile was forced, but I know her better than most people. " Goodbye isn't forever. I know it hurts now, and it will for a while. But it isn't the end of the world. Even if Brother and I don't come back, we'll be watching over you. And we'll be waiting for you guys on the other side." She said. I ran up to her and hugged her.  
  
" Then I guess this is-" I started, but she interrupted me.  
  
" See you later. This is see you later. For us, it'll never be goodbye." She said. I smiled and nodded, but my eyes were full of both emotion and tears.  
  
" Then I'll see you later." I said. " I'll miss you." I added. Himeko rushed to wipe away a few tears.  
  
" I'll be fine. It's you I'm worried about. Take care of yourself, and all of them. Your brothers, your friends... Seto." She said, smiling slyly. I blushed. Only Himeko knew my confusion about that.  
  
" Yeah, I will." I said, tightening my grip on the Key of Ra.  
  
" It's time. Do it, Yuki." Yami said. I drew in a deep breath, and tried to throw my voice as low and commanding as it could go.  
  
" Gates to the Realm of Life, I bid you to open to the Key of Ra!" I commanded. I had an instantaneous flash of a pair of white gates swinging open. We walked through the portal I had opened. Only Yugi and I looked back, for a single instant, then walked on.  
  
I opened my eyes and sat up. I was in the huge room I had died in. At my feet lay all of the Millennium Items. I rummaged through them, found my orb, and clutched it to me. It was good to have something of Himeko's.  
  
" Was it all a dream?" Mai asked, sitting up. Jou grasped her shoulder. Honda groaned and sat up.  
  
" My aching head..." he moaned.  
  
" No." I said, answering Mai. I stared at the orb. It was dull, instead of shiny and unusually bright. " It wasn't a dream." Seto sat up and looked at me. Bakura picked up the Millennium Ring, which I had discovered belonged to him.  
  
" I can't believe he's really gone." He said. " Somehow, I don't know whether to be sad or utterly joyous."  
  
" Be joyous." I advised. " We're alive."  
  
" Excuse me, miss." Someone said suddenly. I turned to see a goon in a black suit. We were instantly on our feet.  
  
" What do you want?" Seto asked threateningly.  
  
" Master Pegasus told us that in the event that you lived and he didn't, we should return the children to you." The goon said. My expression melted into joy.  
  
" Yuki! Seto!" a trio of young voices cried. I sank to my knees as my little brothers came swarming into my arms. I almost toppled over with the force of their hugs, but Seto supported me as he grabbed all four of us up in a hug.  
  
" I have a suggestion." Yugi said, holding up the still whole Millennium Puzzle. " Let's go home." He said. Everyone cheered, and I pressed my tear stained cheek against the top of Yukio's head.  
  
" Home." I said. " That sounds nice."  
  
" Can we go home now?" Mokuba asked. I laughed and cried at the same time as I drew them all into another hug.  
  
" Yes. We can go home now." I told him.  
  
Epilogue...  
  
Six months later...  
  
I turned the page of my book, glancing around the courtyard. Life was normal again, and I was in school, on lunch break, waiting for the others to get there. I sighed, stretching my legs out on the bench at the table I was sitting at. I had barely been back to my book for a moment when my legs were shoved out of the way. I looked up from the book to see Mai sitting down where my legs had been, Anzu on her other side.  
  
" Hey, what's going on?" I asked casually. Mai had transferred to our school after the whole thing in Egypt.  
  
" Nothing. Just fussing over those papers we got in world history." Anzu said. " I got Native Americans, how about you?" Mai sighed.  
  
" I got ancient Phoenicians. Who knows anything about ancient Phoenicians?" she asked. I looked up at her from over the rim of my book.  
  
" I know they were a race of merchants. But that's it." I said. " And before you ask, I got ancient Egyptians. Talk about ironic." I said.  
  
" Definitely. You'll be able to write a killer report on that topic." Mai said. " Hey, guys! Over here!" she shouted, waving to someone across the courtyard. I marked my place in my book and put it down, sick of being interrupted. Yugi, Jou, Honda, and Ryou all made their way over to us. Mai pushed Anzu over to allow room for Jou, who smiled at Anzu and apologized.  
  
" It's okay. I've gotten used to it." She said with a laugh. Mai grinned at her around Jou. Yugi sat next to Anzu, Ryou on his other side. I scooted over, making sure there was enough room on both sides of me for one person to sit. Honda sat in between Mai and I. There was still room left next to me for Seto, whenever he got here. If I didn't save him a spot next to me, and Honda got one, Seto always got mad. On Ryou's other side, there was room for at least three more people.  
  
" So, what did you guys get on the history report?" Mai asked.  
  
" I got ancient Africa. Tell me someone here knows something about Africa." Jou said, looking at everyone around the table pleadingly.  
  
" The oldest known human bones were found in Kenya." I offered.  
  
" Many of early African people were nomads." Yugi followed up.  
  
" Maybe I should go to the library for this one, huh?" Jou said.  
  
" I got Romans. All I know about Romans has to do with Julius Caesar, and the play about him that Shakespeare wrote." Ryou said. He shrugged. " Oh well. A little research never hurt anyone."  
  
" Does anyone know anything about ancient Phoenicians?" Honda asked.  
  
" I've got that one, too. Yuki said that they were a race of merchants." Mai offered.  
  
" Well, that's a start." Honda said approvingly, smiling at me. I smiled back uncertainly. I still wasn't sure how to react to Honda's flirtations.  
  
" I got Egyptians. Doesn't that just beat all?" Yugi asked, laying his hands face up on the table to reinforce his exasperation.  
  
" I got 'em too." I said, grinning.  
  
" We'll, this report's in the bag." Yugi said, shrugging and leaning against Anzu's shoulder. I noticed once again that he seemed to have grown a little. Anzu shifted a little to get more comfortable.  
  
" Hey, Kaiba! Over here!" Jou shouted, waving to Seto as he walked into the courtyard. He jogged over and took the seat by me.  
  
" Hey. Who else here has decided they hate the world history teacher?" he asked. Everyone at the table raised their hands unanimously. " Okay, I'm not alone. I got early Japan, the Edo period." He said. I chuckled as everyone began to talk. Then, from across the courtyard, someone started yelling.  
  
" HEY, WATCH WHERE YOU'RE GOING, BUDDY!" that someone yelled. I sighed.  
  
" Oh boy. Here they come." I muttered as Himeko stormed over to us, took her seat by Ryou, and snagged the apple Yami tossed her without even looking. Anyone could tell she was infuriated.  
  
" Dumb teacher... Too old to be teaching anyway..." Himeko muttered, chomping into her apple.  
  
" Greeks. Of all the ancient people in the world, it had to be Greeks. I hate Greeks. I was ready to wage war on Greeks. Now, I have to write a report on them?" Yami threw up his hands. " The whole purpose of school is torture us, right?" he asked.  
  
" That would be it, Yami." Jou said nonchalantly. Yami and Himeko, upon their return two months ago, had almost immediately become the head bad girl and bad boy of the school. Even though they both wore the uniforms, they managed to look like trouble in the process. Himeko pulled her skirt up higher than Mai, and Yami, forced to not wear any chains or buckles, had pulled every trick in the book to defy the "oppressive authority of your century," as he liked to call it. To explain their sudden appearance, which would seem to the rest of the world out of nowhere, Seto pulled a few strings and got a legal document that said Yugi, Yami, Himeko, and I were a set of quadruplets. Yami was oldest, followed by Himeko, then Yugi, and I was youngest.  
  
" Hey, that new movie is opening in the theater tonight. I saw it in the paper." Honda said to me. I knew he was about to ask me out. Someone save me, I thought desperately. I wouldn't mind going to the movies with Honda at all. As a matter of fact, I sort of liked him. But I didn't want Seto to be getting any ideas. He was too jealous and protective as it was. Fortunately, Himeko had heard Honda and read the distress in my eyes.  
  
" Hey, that's great! We should all go!" she cried. Everyone agreed. I grinned. This was life. I knew I would never be normal. I had given up trying. But, I had a great life, great friends, great brothers, a great sister, and Seto. I still wasn't sure where Seto fell in all that. But I would figure it out. Life isn't always peachy. But that's fine by me. I've got a guardian angel who wears black leather and wants a tattoo of an Egyptian eye on her upper arm, and I know she'll watch out for me and I'll watch out for her. I've got two protective big brothers who always look out for me while I look out for them, and two little brothers who I love to death. I've got the best friends a girl could ever ask for. Mai knows everything about fashion and guys, and Anzu is always there when you need her. Ryou and Honda are really supportive, and with all of their help, I'm letting go of my anger. But the Key of Ra is still mine. And the adventures are far from over.  
  
The End. 


End file.
